Rangers want to sign Mason Cotcher, he played for Arsenal this week

Rangers are one of three clubs that are lining up a move to sign Sunderland gem Mason Cotcher, according to the Sunderland Echo.

The newspaper reported on its website on Monday (23 October) that the Gers are joined in the race for the 17-year-old forward by Premier League sides Arsenal and Brighton.

It said the England youth international played for the Gunners' U-18s team this week and that he can secure a move away from the Stadium of Light at any time for a compensation fee due to him only being on a scholarship deal.

Tough competition

There is no doubt that Rangers face tough competition in the form of Arsenal and Brighton if they want to land a deal for Cotcher.

The Gunners appear to have stolen a march in the race to sign the forward after he has already played for their youth side, suggesting both parties are interested in the move.

The Seagulls are also a potentially solid option for the teenager as a number of young players have improved drastically after making the move to the Amex Stadium in recent years.

But the Gers can potentially offer Cotcher a quicker route to the first team than the Premier League sides and Glasgow is significantly closer to Sunderland than the other clubs if he wants to stay closer to home.

It will be interesting to see how this one develops, but it looks like the Light Blues could have some difficultly in trying to pull this deal off.

In other Rangers news, a highly-rated transfer guru has turned the club down following an approach.