In what would be a bargain deal, Rangers have now reportedly been offered the chance to sign a Bundesliga-winning defender who graduated from Manchester United’s academy as a young player.
Rangers transfer news
Having already turned to the transfer market once this month to welcome Rafael Fernandes loan from Ligue 1 club LOSC Lille, Rangers could yet welcome further reinforcements. The central defender arrives hoping to help Philippe Clement’s side restore some pride in the Scottish Premiership title race after they fell behind leaders Celtic by as many as 13 points in the first-half of the campaign.
Speaking to the club website for the first time, Fernandes said: “I am very happy to be here, it was a club I wanted to come to since I heard about the interest, and I am really happy to finally to be here.
“My first impressions have been really good, I met some of my colleagues, some of the staff and all of them made me comfortable to start this new challenge.”
Rangers have already sold their own Lyall Cameron in "world-class" star
Rangers let a player go in 2017 who could have been their very own Lyall Cameron
ByRoss KilvingtonJan 21, 2025
Even after signing the Lille defender on loan, however, the Gers have been handed the opportunity to return to the transfer market. According to Wales Online, Rangers have been offered the chance to sign Timothy Fosu-Mensah, who has been a free agent since leaving Bayer Leverkusen as a Bundesliga winner last summer.
As things stand, reports have indicated that Rangers have rejected the chance to sign the versatile right-back who must now turn towards other potentially interested parties to finally end his free agent status. An experienced defender, Rangers’ rejection comes as a surprise and one that they must hope not to regret in the near future.
"Incredible" Fosu-Mensah would have been a bargain
Still just 27 years old and fresh from working under Xabi Alonso at Bayer Leverkusen, there’s every chance that Fosu-Mensah would have been a bargain deal for Rangers as a free agent this month. And whilst those at Ibrox could claim concerns over the defender’s injury history after a knee injury forced him to watch on from the sidelines for all of last season, they could have taken a gamble.
The Carrington graduate has earned plenty of praise over the years, including from former Frank de Boer, who worked with Fosu-Mensah at Crystal Palace. The Dutchman told reporters as relayed by the Bundesliga website: “Timothy is a player who has great pace and incredible physical ability. In today’s game you need players with strength and speed and he is an individual with that and as well as defence can also play in midfield.”
The versatility that De Boer alluded to previously would have eased concerns in both Clement’s midfield and backline, but it seems as though Rangers are content with seeking other options if they are to return to the market for a second time this month.