Oscar Cortes looked a bright spark after joining Rangers on loan from Ligue 1 RC Lens in January.
The young Colombian winger, 20, was signed on an initial loan-to-buy deal after a €4.5m (£3.8m) move to France from local club Millonarios last summer.
Nils Koppen was familiar with Oscar Cortes from the TransferRoom summit and alongside Mohamed Diomande and Fabio Silva, the new Rangers Director of Recruitment looked to have made a bright start to his Ibrox tenure with this January trio.
But a frustrating injury sustained only seven games into his Rangers career, and subsequent surgery, has thrown the youngster’s Ibrox prospects into disarray.
Alongside centre-back stalwart Connor Goldson and Brazilian striker Danilo, Cortes is one of three players who are out for the remainder of the season.
But the troublesome injury is not set to stop Rangers’ pursuit of Oscar Cortes and one Colombian journalist has been providing an insight into any prospective transfer this summer.
Rangers’ Cortes move on ‘right track’
Speaking ahead of the Scottish Premiership clash with Kilmarnock at Ibrox, Philippe Clement confirmed that Rangers are looking at a summer deal for Oscar Cortes.
Whilst the Belgian never gave any clarity regarding how a deal might be structured, Clement was clear that negotiations with RC Lens over a move are ongoing.
“We are talking with Lens about what the situation is because in this situation it is a different situation from when he was fit,” said Clement.
“At the moment he was fit he was showing the right things, but it was really short term. Then it needs to be at the right price.”
Asked about a potential loan move, Clement said: “That is something to discuss. We will see what is said in the talks with Lens. I cannot say just now.”
Now, Colombian journalist Julián Capera – who works for ESPN out of Bogota – has been providing an update on Rangers’ pursuit of Oscar Cortes.
The South American believes that a loan deal is at the forefront of the conversation over Cortes and believes that discussions are on the ‘right track’.
Translated into English, the post reads: “Rangers 🏴 and Lens 🇫🇷 are working on extending the loan of Colombian Óscar Cortés, who has already completed two months of recovery after his surgery.
“The current loan is about to expire, but the new agreement is on the right track.”
Loan deal protects Ibrox injury interests
The sounds around this transfer are quite exciting and Rangers fans will now keep an eye on any Oscar Cortes developments.
But whilst securing a talented young South American winger is something for fans to shout about heading into the summer, that serious injury will naturally have a few fans tentative.
Rangers have just seen their entire season decimated by a series of injury problems and there are few in the Ibrox squad who haven’t suffered from a variety of issues this campaign.
Philippe Clement has been public with his frustrations over the situation and going forward from this summer, an improvement in the club’s medical record is essential if we’re going to be successful.
For that reason, a loan deal for Oscar Cortes probably suits all parties more than a permanent switch and let’s hope Rangers can strike a suitable agreement with RC Lens this summer.
