Barry Ferguson: Rangers must tell Trabzonspor to ‘forget’ deal for exit-linked John Lundstram

Rangers must tell Trabzonspor to forget about landing a deal for John Lundstram this summer, according to Barry Ferguson.

Writing on the Daily Record website on Friday (29 March), the pundit said the 30-year-old midfielder will be one of the first names on the team sheet for the clash against Hibernian on Saturday (30 March) after being linked with a move to the Turkish club alongside teammate Borna Barisic [Akdeniz Gercek].

He added that Philippe Clement will be “desperate” to get the English midfielder tied down to a new deal at Ibrox after playing almost every minute since the Light Blues boss arrived in Glasgow.

“I also noticed that the same Turkish club (Trabzonspor) has been credited with an interest in taking John Lundstram too as part of a double swoop,” said Ferguson. “They ought to be quickly told to forget all about it. Yes, Lundstram’s deal is also up in the summer but, while it might be time for Barisic to move on, that’s not the case where the Scouser is concerned.

“Along with Jack Butland, James Tavernier and Connor Goldson, Lundstram’s name will be one of the first on Clement’s team sheet this weekend. The Belgian might rotate his players regularly – and his midfield men in particular – but Lundstram has played almost every single minute.

“That tells you how important the manager believes him to be to the team. And it tells me Clement will be desperate to get him tied down on a new deal over the course of the next few weeks. I certainly hope he puts pen to paper.”

Rangers must tie John Lundstram down to new contract

There will surely be discussions going on at Rangers to try and tie Lundstram down to a new contract after he’s been in fine form since Clement arrived at the club.

The midfielder has knitted things together nicely in the middle of the park and his performances have clearly caught the eye of some interested parties.

Trabzonspor have perhaps noticed the Englishman when they’ve been watching Barisic, with the left-back expected to make the switch to Turkey this summer.

Rangers
Rangers manager Philippe Clement

But the Gers will be keen to ensure Lundstram doesn’t follow his teammate out of the door at Ibrox after firmly nailing down a starting spot in recent months.

The midfielder’s immediate attention, however, will be on helping the Light Blues pick up some important victories in their title challenge, starting with the clash against Hibs.

In other Rangers news, Neil Lennon has labelled a situation as “unacceptable” after what happened to the Gers.

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