Vanja Dragojevic 'on the verge' of Rangers switch as Partizan Belgrade boss speaks out

Rangers are finally closing in on a deal to sign Partizan Belgrade's Vanja Dragojevic.

The Light Blues have been keen to bring the midfielder to Ibrox, and now look closer than ever to doing so.

Derek McInnes already has multiple midfield options, though the Bears clearly feel something is missing in the middle of the park.

Dragojevic is already a captain at 20 years of age, but was absent from his club's 1-0 win over Neftci Baku on Monday.

It's suggested that this is due to the fact he is bound for Ibrox and will become Rangers' sixth summer signing.

That seems to be true, as Partizan Belgrade boss Sasa Ilic has been speaking about the reason for his absence this week.

Sasa Ilic explains Vanja Dragojevic's omission amid Rangers links

There is little separating Rangers and Partizan Belgrade in discussions for Dragojevic at the moment, and a deal looks close.

The fee mentioned for the defensive midfielder has been around the £4.5million mark, which suggests he could be coming straight into the starting eleven.

The 20-year-old will compete with the likes of Nicolas Raskin, Tochi Chukwuani, Mohamed Diomande, Dan Neil and Connor Barron for a starting spot.

However, some of those Rangers stars mentioned could be on their way out.

As reported by the Daily Record, sources in Serbia say Dragojevic is "on the verge" of joining the Bears, as his team-mate Ognen Ugresic is close to leaving, too.

Speaking about the decision to leave the pair out of the game, Ilic said: "That was an agreement with people from the club. Our captain Dragojevic and his deputy Ugresic didn't play today, so that's why Vukotic had the tape.

"We do not attach great importance to it during the preparations."

The Partizan Belgrade boss suggested they were absent so that they wouldn't risk the chance of picking up an injury ahead of their respective moves.

Now, Rangers look like they can start to look forward to what Dragojevic will soon be bringing to Ibrox.

The type of player Derek McInnes is getting with Dragojevic

While McInnes will have his say in lots of transfers, there's no doubt about the fact that he probably never heard of Dragojevic until becoming the Rangers boss.

It's highly likely that the player is someone whom the club appreciate internally, and is a signing for the future, as well as the present.

Either way, the Bears need to utilise their foreign expertise as they have done in the past, and McInnes will be getting a top talent regardless.

Dragojevic is an all-action midfielder despite his defensive duties, and grabbed seven goal involvements in Super Liga last season.

He has experience in the Conference and Europa League, too, and McInnes will be getting something different in midfield with this potential signing.

With Hearts signing unknowns to great effect last season, that could be happening at Ibrox right now.