A few weeks ago, former Rangers striker Kenny Miller opened up on the reservations he was harbouring regarding a potential move to Ibrox for Scottish Premiership marksman extraordinaire Lawrence Shankland.
Miller was in no doubt that, if Shankland was to arrive, Rangers would get themselves a proven, prolific goalscorer capable of breaking the 25-goal barrier while barely breaking sweat.
But, with his 29th birthday approaching, is the Hearts talisman really the type or profile of signing the Glasgow giants are interested in these days?
“They are 100 per cent aware of what (Shankland) is doing, with the fact that he is a Rangers fan and there is a lot of hype surrounding him,” Miller told Clyde SuperScoreboard.
“I am just wondering with how Rangers went about their business in terms of recruitment in January, if he is fitting the profile in terms of his age and potential to resell.
“I still think he’d be a really good signing. But whether he is actually on the radar as a realistic target for Nils Koppen and Philippe Clement, I genuinely don’t know.”
Rangers’ January activity, as Miller alluded to, revolved around exciting young talents brimming with re-sale potential. Oscar Cortes and Mohamed Diomande were brought in from France and Denmark respectively, and the early business conducted by Clement and Diomande at the start of this summer has followed a similar vein.
Jefte Vital, only 20, joined from Fluminense. Rangers have reportedly held discussions too with Albion Rrahmani (23), Yusuf Kabadayi (20), and Jose Cordoba (22), albeit before his £3 million move to Norwich City.
Rangers ‘set to sign’ Clinton Nsiala from AC Milan
Clinton Nsiala, 20 himself, represents a continuation of that trend. Sacha Tavolieri, the respected Belgian reporter, dropped quite the bombshell on Monday afternoon when he claimed that Rangers are closing in on a deal that will see the Rennes-born centre-half become the latest addition to Clement’s squad.
“Rangers now set to sign AC Milan’s huge talent, Clinton Nsiala,” Tavolieri writes on X. “An agreement on personal terms on the basis of a long-term contract has been reached.
“Medical tests to take place by the end of the week.”
Talk about a bolt from the blue. Rangers hadn’t even been linked with Nsiala, and now he appears destined to board the next flight to Glasgow.
Nsiala, capped by France at youth level, joined seven-time European Champions AC Milan from Nantes back in 2021. He has made only one first-team appearance for the Rossoneri since then but remains very highly regarded in scouting circles.
Nsiala will join Rangers on a free, his Milan contract expiring in July.
A left-sided centre-half arrives at Ibrox
According to French publication FootMercato, he was offered a new three-year deal late last year. There was, at the time, interest from clubs in France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Belgium, though Scotland appears his most likely destination these days.
The same publication adds that Nsiala has been ‘seduced’ by the project on offer at Rangers. He will likely play regular first-team football in Glasgow, with Champions League action also on offer. Stuttgart, Monza, Empoli and Hamburg were all keen.
Stuttgart will be playing Champions League football themselves in 2023/24 after finishing second in the Bundesliga, ahead of Bayern Munich.
A left footed centre-half, Rangers’ sudden swoop for Nsiala comes after they missed out on the aforementioned Cordoba to Norwich.
