Ferguson reacts to Igamane exit news after ‘telling’ Rangers development
Hamza Igamane continues to be linked with an array of clubs, despite falling out of favour at Rangers.
The Morocco international was a substitute for both legs of Rangers’ Europa League quarter-final tie against Athletic Bilbao, which ended in a 2-0 aggregate defeat.
After being given just five minutes to make an impact in the home tie, Igamane was brought on early in the second half in the second leg.
Igamane has been touted as a target for Everton, Newcastle United and Tottenham south of the border.
And fresh reports have suggested that Marseille have also now prioritised the signing of Igamane in the summer transfer window.
Igamane an enigma at Rangers
Igamane was overlooked for Rangers’ two biggest games of the season, yet a figure of £20million has still been mentioned for his possible Ibrox exit.
In the view of pundit Derek Ferguson, it is telling that brother Barry Ferguson did not start Igamane for either of those games, but he does not believe that necessarily means he will move on.
“It’s quite telling that Igamane didn’t start either game against Bilbao,” he exclusively told Ibrox News. “We can’t argue that he’s a talented boy.
| Player | Games | Goals |
| Cyriel Dessers | 30 | 12 |
| Hamza Igamane | 29 | 11 |
| Vaclav Cerny | 28 | 11 |
| Danilo | 19 | 5 |
“Has he gone off form of late? Yeah, he has. But there are reasons for that. When other coaches or recruitment staff at other clubs look at him, they’ll see a talented guy who is still young and there’s plenty to work with.
“He ticks all the boxes and you can only see him getting better and better. He’ll be worth a fair bit of money down the line.
“I don’t think he’ll be hard to deal with at all if Barry stays on. It was interesting he spoke about the chat he had with his players before the Athletic game, and it was telling who started.
“If he is to go then Rangers need to get a fair price. That has been one of the biggest problems over the last number of years – letting players run down their contracts or leave on the cheap. I hope those days are over.”
Rangers’ leading goalscorers this season
Igamane has 11 goals in the Scottish Premiership this season, including a dramatic late winner against Celtic that sparked wild scenes.
Only Cyriel Dessers (12) has more league goals than Igamane among Rangers players this season, while the Moroccan also has four goals in the Europa League to his name.
Rangers fans will certainly hope there is a place for Igamane in the side going forward, but if he can net an eight-figure fee, then maybe selling would not be the worst option.