As far as revenge goes, it won’t quite ease the pain of seeing Celtic celebrate yet another Scottish Premiership title. It certainly won’t offset the heartbreak of last weekend’s cup final defeat to Rangers’ Old Firm rivals at Hampden Park.
But, with the season over and Rangers left to stew over a campaign full of ‘what might have been?’ moments, the transfer market at least offers Philippe Clement and co the chance to make things a little trickier for their green-clad rivals from across Glasgow.
Alongside a new left-back – tick, Jefte Vital arriving at last – a central defender, a midfielder, a new forward and perhaps a winger too, there is room in the Ibrox inn for a goalkeeper.
And, no, Rangers’ pursuit of a shot-stopper does not mean Jack Butland is leaving. Heaven forbid. It does, however, suggest that Jon McLaughlin is unlikely to see his contract extended. Robby McCrorie, meanwhile, has made no secret of his desire for more regular football, and he is unlikely to get it as long as he stays put in Scotland’s second city.
Rangers want a new goalkeeper amid Liam Kelly talks
Rangers have held talks about bringing Liam Kelly back to the club where he started his career. But, as Kelly’s former Motherwell manager Graham Alexander tells the Scottish Sun, he will not be heading back to Ibrox to sit on the bench behind Butland.
Should discussions with the soon-to-be free-agent Kelly run aground, Rangers may turn to the lesser-known Stojan Lekovic. According to Fussball Europa, Rangers have scouted Lekovic on an almost weekly basis of late.
The 22-year-old Serb reportedly has a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ with FK Radnicki, meanwhile, which allows him to leave this summer for a fee below the £1 million mark. Young, affordable, and perhaps a little more willing than Kelly to fight for his place, the 6ft 6ins Lekovic sticks plenty of boxes as far as a second-choice goalkeeper goes.
And this is where the Celtic factor comes in.
Werder Bremen, Fussball Europa add, have their sights fixed on Lekovic in case of Michael Zetterer’s departure. Despite recently signing a contract extension, the signs still suggest that Zetterer could be on his way.
He is one of the shot-stoppers on Celtic’s radar following the retirement of Joe Hart. As such, should Rangers win the race for Lekovic, that could spark a chain reaction which leads to Werder Bremen slamming down the shutters and declaring Zetterer ‘not for sale’.
Rangers can make Celtic’s goalkeeper search trickier
As we said, it’s small consolation, Adam Idah’s wild celebrations still burning in the mind. But after Rangers failed to get one over on Celtic on the pitch, at least they can become a thorn in Brendan Rodgers’ side off it as Philippe Clement and co build a squad capable of turning one trophy into two or three ahead of 2023/24.
Lekovic made 31 first-team appearances for Radnicki in 2023/24, keeping ten clean sheets while helping his team finish eighth in the Serbian top flight.
“Lekovic is someone who has the capacity to save the team in some crisis periods during the game with a couple of bravura interventions,” Radnicka coach Feda Dudic said of his young glovesman recently, via Mozzart Sport.
“That’s why I constantly encourage him to defend even those situations that at first glance seem indefensible. I am very satisfied with his performance.”
