Glasgow Rangers will be hoping that the January 2025 transfer window will be more rewarding than the year before.
Fabio Silva, Oscar Cortes and Mohamed Diomande all arrived in Glasgow midway through the 2023/24 campaign, but it was only the latter that made an impact as he signed permanently in the summer.
Silva failed to showcase his true talents, while Cortes managed just a handful of games before suffering a season-ending injury in February. The Light Blues ended up failing to win either the Premiership or Scottish Cup and recruitment this winter must be better.
With the window not opening until next week, the Light Blues have already been linked with a few players. Marko Soldo, a midfielder from Croatia has been linked, while Chelsea player Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is another name that has been doing the rounds of late.
Finances will dictate just how many new signings Philippe Clement will be able to make next month, and he could be forced to rely on loan moves like last winter. That is, unless he is able to sell a few first-team players.
Another Premier League player was also rumoured to be on the Light Blues’ radar ahead of a potential move, but this looks unlikely now…
Rangers linked with Premier League striker
Towards the end of November, news emerged that Rangers were one of the clubs showing interest in Brighton and Hove Albion’s Evan Ferguson ahead of the January transfer window.
The report claimed that the Seagulls were going to make the striker available for a loan move as he wasn’t playing much first-team football under Fabian Hurzeler, with Celtic another team who were keen on bringing him north of the border.
Several Premier League sides were also showing admiration for the Irishman as he seeks to gain more game time during the second half of the season.
A loan move would be ideal, but with so many clubs interested, it might be hard for Clement to convince the centre-forward that Rangers is the perfect club to join, especially when he can remain in the Premier League.
Do Rangers really need Ferguson, however? Not only can the manager call upon Danilo and Hamza Igamane as players who can be a key part of the club’s future, but Zak Lovelace is someone who has been overlooked of late.
The young Englishman could certainly be Clement’s own version of Ferguson – a young, talented striker who is ready to make his mark.
Zak Lovelace could be Rangers' own Evan Ferguson
Despite his tender years, Ferguson has already played 79 senior matches for Brighton, going on to score 17 goals and provide five assists.
Since making his debut for the Republic of Ireland in November 2022, Ferguson has gone on to score four goals for his country across 18 games, showcasing his talents on the international stage.
In The Pipeline
Football FanCast's In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.
Lovelace might not be at this level yet, but he is still only 18, making his achievements all the more remarkable.
He made his senior bow aged just 15 for Millwall, becoming their second-youngest ever player when he came off the bench against Coventry in December 2021.
Fast-forward six months and the Light Blues had managed to secure his signature, luring Lovelace to Scotland. Sporting director at the time, Ross Wilson, hailed the youngster, saying:
“We are delighted to welcome Zak to Rangers. He is an exciting young player and one we are sure will progress here.”
Under Giovanni Van Bronckhorst, Lovelace made his senior debut for the Light Blues in August 2022, coming on for the final few minutes in a League Cup tie against Queen of the South, thus becoming the fifth-youngest player to make an appearance for the club in the process.
Player
Age at debut
Derek Ferguson
16 years, 24 days
Bailey Rice
16 years, four months and 14 days
Tom Walsh
16 years, four months and 27 days
Paul Nsio
16 years, five months and 15 days
Zak Lovelace
16 years, seven months and 7 days
Since then, he has only featured a further four times for Rangers, as injury issues have hampered his progress. It looks as though he is back to full fitness, however, and Clement should be integrating the 18-year-old into the first-team squad, as he could be the next big thing to make it at the club.
With Hamza Igamane showing what can happen by trusting young talent in the starting XI, Lovelace could go on to form a solid partnership with the Moroccan starlet.
Zak Lovelace could form dream duo with Hamza Igamane
Like Lovelace, Igamane can either play centrally, or out wide on the left, offering positional flexibility, which is a big bonus for the manager.
Since making his breakthrough, Igamane has scored six goals, including four in the Europa League and has looked happy wherever he has been deployed. This game time will only ensure his improvement as a player.
Lovelace has shone for both the B team and the Youth side at Rangers, scoring 19 goals and registering 11 assists in just 40 matches, which means he registers a goal contribution once every 1.3 games for the club.
His only appearance for the first team came during the Europa League clash against FCSB when the Gers were cruising to victory. He was given 16 minutes on the pitch, which saw the Englishman register a single shot, complete seven of his eight passes and take 13 touches as he made his continental bow for the club.
The more often he is involved in these squads, the higher the chance Lovelace will have of getting minutes here and there. He is still developing, but exposure at this level can only be a good thing.
There is no doubt he has a wonderful future in the game, but patience is key to his development from talented youngster to first-team regular over the next few seasons.
Signing someone like Ferguson may give the club a short-term boost, but with Lovelace already at the club itching for opportunities, might it be better to use him rather than loan a player from elsewhere?
Hopefully Clement thinks so.
Rangers' top 15 goalscorers of all time
Rangers have had plenty of natural goalscorers at Ibrox over the last 150 years.
ByRoss KilvingtonDec 26, 2024