Rangers accelerate cut-price move for Europa League star as Clement eyes replacement for exit-linked duo

Rangers have already done some impressive transfer business this month that has seen Phillipe Clement bring in Wolves forward Fabio Silva on loan. 

The Scottish giants have also secured a deal for midfielder Mohamed Diomande, who would have also been paraded on Monday had his move not been held up by Storm Isha.

Rangers are now focused on signing a new left-back before the window slams shut.

Borna Barisic is in the final six months of his contract, while Ridvan Yilmaz has failed to live up to expectations since his £5m move from Besiktas.

TEAMtalk sources have confirmed that Galatasaray are keen to try and bring Yilmaz back to Turkey, but the defender won’t leave until Rangers sign a replacement.

Now, we can exclusively reveal that one player being looked at is FC Twente star Gjis Smal. The 26-year-old’s contract is set to expire in June.

He has made 107 appearances in total for the Dutch club and has experience playing in the Europa League.

TEAMtalk understands that Rangers hold significant interest in Smal, but a deal is not yet over the line.

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Rangers could sign Smal on the cheap this week

Rangers are in a strong position to sign Smal on a cut-price deal this month but there will be zero movement until either Yilmaz or Barisic leaves.

Clement has been open about the fact that the Glasgow side must be clever with deals as they do not have huge amounts of cash at their disposal.

Rangers also spent a relatively large sum on Diomande – splashing out around £4.5m on the playmaker.

Clement recognises that there is a need for fresh talent at Ibrox, though, with the manager keen to add in all areas of the pitch.

TEAMtalk can confirm that he also wants to bring in a striker, but is aware that January may not be the best month to try and land a top forward.

Abdallah Sima, Danilo and Cyril Dessers have all played up front for Rangers this year but out of those summer signings, Sima and Danilo are injured and Dessers has been extremely poor.

If Rangers are successful in luring Smal to Scotland, they will have made three solid January additions, which is good for a club who generally do their business in the summer months.

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