Rangers Transfer News: Hjerto-Dahl Race Intensifies
Rangers will walk out at Tannadice on Friday night with a new manager in Derek McInnes, a new captain in Lawrence Shankland and seven fresh faces in the squad. The rebuild is already sizeable. It’s nowhere near finished.
With Europa League qualifiers on the horizon and a bloated wage bill still hanging over the place, Ibrox is braced for a frantic final month of the window. Big decisions are coming in both directions.
Hjerto-Dahl at the centre of a growing tug of war
The name on every Rangers fan’s lips is Jens Hjerto-Dahl. They’ve waited, they’ve watched, and they’ve seen one bid knocked back.
The Tromso playmaker has been on the club’s radar for months. Rangers tested the water with a £5.4million offer earlier this month, only to be firmly rebuffed by the Norwegian side. Hjerto-Dahl hasn’t hidden his admiration for the Ibrox club, admitting he is “tempted” by the move, but the market around him is exploding.
Cardiff City have pushed in hard with a proposal close to £8million. Hull City, fresh from promotion to the English Premier League, are the latest to be credited with serious interest in the 20-year-old. Tromso’s transfer chief Lars Petter Kræmer-Andressen insists there have been no fresh formal approaches, and for now the midfielder remains with the squad for their Conference League qualifier against Hradec Kralove.
The chase is turning into a high-stakes waiting game. Rangers want him. Others can pay more. Something will have to give.
Makhanya move close as McInnes eyes defensive steel
While the Hjerto-Dahl saga rumbles on, one deal is close enough for McInnes to talk about registration deadlines.
Olwethu Makhanya is poised to become signing number eight. The South African international centre-back, unsettled at Philadelphia Union and recently AWOL after a blocked move to Belgium, is on the verge of a £3.3million switch to Glasgow.
McInnes has confirmed Rangers are hopeful of having the 22-year-old available for the Premiership opener against Dundee United. Makhanya, part of the Bafana Bafana squad at the World Cup without making an appearance, would add pace and aggression to a backline that has already been reshaped.
And that reshaping has consequences.
Souttar squeezed as Godfrey arrival sparks interest
The loan arrival of England international Ben Godfrey from Atalanta has thrown John Souttar’s future into sharp focus.
The Scotland defender signed a new deal earlier this year, apparently securing his place at Ibrox for the coming season. Now he finds himself at the centre of a battle in the English market. Leicester City, Sheffield United and Swansea City are all circling.
For Souttar, 28, the picture is suddenly clear: more competition, more minutes to share, and a decision looming. For Rangers, a sale would help finance the next phase of recruitment. The Godfrey loan has not just strengthened the squad; it has shifted the internal hierarchy.
Antman exit set to fund wide reshuffle
Out wide, another story is reaching its natural conclusion.
Oliver Antman arrived from Go Ahead Eagles and started brightly, but the spark faded. Under McInnes, he has slipped down the pecking order and now looks set to move on.
Anderlecht are pushing hardest, with a deal in excess of £4million on the table for the Finland winger. Derby County and FC Twente are also in the frame, but the Belgian club are understood to be leading the chase.
Rangers are light on natural wingers already, so losing Antman is not without risk. The money, though, could trigger a rapid reset in the wide areas.
Markelo lined up as loan solution
One of the names on that reset list is Jahnoah Markelo.
The Coventry City winger, signed for £4.3million from FC Zurich a year ago after catching the eye in Switzerland, made only six appearances last season as Frank Lampard steered the Sky Blues back into the Premier League for the first time in 25 years.
Rangers see opportunity where Coventry saw depth. The Ibrox club are keen on a season-long loan for the 23-year-old, a move that would offer Markelo a platform and McInnes a low-risk way to replenish his wide options if Antman departs.
McCausland weighs up overseas return
On the opposite flank, Ross McCausland stands at a crossroads.
The Northern Ireland winger, who spent time at Aris in Cyprus last season, is open to another move abroad. Interest is already coming from clubs across Europe and Major League Soccer, with Rangers waiting to see who is prepared to match their valuation.
English League One sides have made enquiries but hold little appeal for the 23-year-old. Luton Town asked the question as well, only to admit they cannot pay a fee or match his current wages. Bigger clubs in that division have also reached out, yet the player’s focus appears to be on something more ambitious.
McCausland has trained well under McInnes since returning for pre-season and has just one year left on his contract. Rangers must now decide whether to cash in or gamble on a new deal.
Cozier-Duberry remains a costly long shot
Amario Cozier-Duberry has never been far from the Rangers rumour mill.
The Brighton winger, once on Arsenal’s books, impressed on loan at Bolton last season, helping them secure promotion back to the Championship. Rangers have tracked his progress and he remains firmly on their radar.
The problem is price. Brighton value the 21-year-old at around £5million and believe his ceiling is high. For a club trying to juggle multiple deals and balance the books, that fee would demand a major outgoing or a change in priorities.
The admiration is real. Whether the numbers ever line up is another matter.
Mendy bid underlines market Rangers once shopped in
One final name underlines how quickly the market can move away from Ibrox.
Nobel Mendy, the Senegal international full-back, sat on Rangers’ radar last year before opting to leave Real Betis for Rayo Vallecano. Now Hull City, fresh into the Premier League, have reportedly tabled a bid in the region of £15.4million for the 21-year-old.
Rangers watched him. Hull are now prepared to pay elite-money for him.
That contrast tells its own story as McInnes and the Ibrox hierarchy try to rebuild a squad capable of winning the Premiership and navigating Europe. Some targets are within reach, others already out of range, and the clock is ticking.
The next month will reveal whether Rangers can turn this flurry of interest, bids and brinkmanship into a coherent squad – or whether the window’s biggest headlines end up belonging to players they never quite managed to land.
