Ridvan Yilmaz exit: Philippe Clement shares Rangers transfer ‘expectation’
Ridvna Yilmaz is not expected to leave Rangers in the winter transfer window despite his absence against Ross County, Philippe Clement says.
The Belgian manager revealed that the Turkish defender’s unavailability at Ibrox on Sunday (2 February) was due to an injury.
Clement will only let the left-back leave if they can sign a replacement, which he admits is unlikely.
Speaking to BBC Scotland (2 February), as relayed by the Daily Record, the former Monaco boss said: [Yilmaz] is injured. We want to keep all our players that perform well. We can only let players go that perform well if we can replace them by better players. So I don’t expect that in the case of Ridvan.”
Philippe Clement makes sensible Ridvan Yilmaz Rangers transfer admission
It makes sense for the Light Blues to keep a hold of the 23-year-old until the end of the season as they’re still alive in the Europa League and the Scottish Cup.
The transfer window is in its final hours, and the Bears would need to work quickly to make any new additions on deadline day.
Yilmaz has been a utility player for the Gers this season, playing at left-back, right-back and on the attacking wings.
Rangers have likely realised the Turkish ace’s importance in the squad as he came in handy after the multiple injury issues in defence.
While James Tavernier and John Souttar have returned to action, the unpredictability of fitness issues means Clement needs depth in his ranks.
The 23-year-old defender might not be the first name on the teamsheet, but it would be prudent to keep a hold of him at least until the summer.
Yilmaz can’t be blamed if he wishes to leave Ibrox for regular minutes elsewhere, and it remains to be seen whether the defender will push to go back to his home country.
In other Rangers news, an update has been shared regarding Yilmaz after a loan-to-buy bid.
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