Rangers have just found out if they'll be signing Zinedin Smajlovic after approach

Rangers have missed out on the chancde to sign Zinedin Smajlovic from Norwegian club Sandefjord.

Last month, it was reported that Rangers had approached Sandefjord with an enquiry about Smajlovic, who'd also been the subject of a bid from Celtic.

Italian journalist Rudy Galetti reported that Celtic had offered £3.8million, plus £1.7m in add-ons, for the 22-year-old Sweden youth international.

However, both Old Firm clubs have failed in their pursuits of the Stockholm-born colossus, with Olympiacos instead agreeing a far superior deal with Sandefjord.

Smajlovic has made 10 appearances for Sandefjord in the 2026 Norwegian Eliteserien season so far.

His performances in Norway have drawn a lot of attention though and he's now reportedly heading to Greece in a record-breaking move.

How wide of the mark was Celtic's bid for Smajlovic?

According to Swedish news outlet Expressen, Olympiacos are paying £4.2m up front for Smajlovic.

If all bonuses end up being applied to the deal, it will cost £5.1m, meaning that Celtic's bid wasn't too far off what Sandefjord ended up agreeing.

Still, the Olympiacos offer is reportedly a club record for Sandefjord and Expressen claims that as long as there are no unexpected hitches, the centre-back will fly to Greece soon before undergoing a medical.

It might end up being a case of 'what could have been' for Rangers and Celtic, who are both desperate to improve their squads this summer after a less-than-impressive 2025-26 campaign.

But the Gers do have targets in mind still who can do exactly that.

Who Rangers could sign instead of Zinedin Smajlovic

Derek McInnes will want to act quickly to improve his side's defence ahead of the new Scottish Premiership season starting later

Since the end of last term, Ross McCrorie and Ben Godfrey have arrived at Ibrox to offer more stability at the back.

However, it's clear that McInnes wants to continue adding to his options and Excelsior Rotterdam's Casper Widell is also on Rangers' radar.

Troyes defender Sankhoun Diaware has also been linked with a switch to Govan, keeping with the theme of young centre-backs across Europe being eyed by the Glaswegian outfit.