Scottish Gossip: Rangers, Aberdeen, Hearts, Motherwell, Ross County, Kilmarnock

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

New York Cosmos midfielder Niko Kranjcar, 31, is on the verge of agreeing a two-year contract with Rangers. (The Sun, print edition)

Ross County chairman Roy MacGregor has confirmed that the Scottish Premiership club have rejected a six-figure offer from Burton Albion for 23-year-old Australia midfielder Jackson Irvine. (Press and Journal)

Sheffield United have held talks with freed Rangers striker Nicky Clark, but manager Phil Brown admits "there's a lot of interest" in the 25-year-old. (The Sun, print edition)

Hearts head coach Robbie Neilson is poised to hold signing talks with Robbie Muirhead, the 20-year-old forward whose contract was terminated by Dundee United and who is also attracting interest from Brighton and Huddersfield Town. (Edinburgh Evening News)

Niko Kranjcar is being linked with a move to Rangers

Motherwell have held signing talks with goalkeeper Dean Brill, the 30-year-old who was released by Inverness Caledonian Thistle after a year sidelined by injury. (Daily Record, print edition)

Aberdeen are hoping that Sir Alex Ferguson's continuing influence at Manchester United will help them secure 23-year-old goalkeeper Sam Johnstone on loan from Old Trafford. (Daily Express)

Former Aberdeen striker Declan McManus has been freed by English League One club Fleetwood Town, with the 21-year-old likely to rejoin Greenock Morton, where he had been on loan. (Daily Record, print edition)

Aberdeen forward Niall McGinn admits he might have to settle for a place on the Northern Ireland bench during Euro 2016 because of manager Michael O'Neill's recent switch to playing three central defenders with wing-backs. (BT Sport)

Scotland head coach Gordon Strachan has apologised to the nation for missing out on the European Championship finals and admitted that he is hurting so badly he can hardly bring himself to watch the tournament. (Daily Record, print edition)

If Scotland had qualified for the Euro 2016 finals, they would have the 12th most expensive squad at the tournament in France. (Daily Record)

Jackson Irvine played for Australia against Greece last week

England's strip is "selling well" in Scotland ahead of the Euro 2016 finals because their squad is full of players prominent in their Premier League teams adored by fans north of the Border.(Daily Record)

John Fleming, the Scottish FA's head of refereeing operations, has urged his paymasters not to give up on the idea of making Scotland's elite referees full-time despite their counterparts in England commanding a salary of £100.000 per year. (The Herald)

Neil Lennon has derided what he describes as a "boyband" attitude in recent Hibernian teams and the club's new manager has pledged to toughen them up.(The Scotsman)

Neil Lennon has said his first act as Hibernian manager will be to try to persuade midfielder John McGinn and striker Jason Cummings that their futures lie in Leith. (The National)

Neil Lennon, the new Hibernian manager, believes the Edinburgh club should be a top-four side in the Scottish Premiership.(The Herald)

Dundee United have appointed former Dundee City Council chief executive David Dorward to their board as an associate director. (The Courier)

Nicky Clark is being linked with Sheffield United after leaving Rangers

The Well Society has revealed that it is around 600 members short of its target of 2,000 paying adults as the fans group seeks to take control of Motherwell.(The Herald)

A group of Kilmarnock shareholders are ready to call an extraordinary general meeting in an attempt to oust former chairman Michael Johnston from the Scottish Premiership club's board of directors. (Daily Record)

Ladbrokes is poised to increase its sponsorship of the Scottish Professional Football League by signing a new contract through to 2019, with its current deal due to end in 2017. (The Sun, print edition)

OTHER GOSSIP

Rower Katherine Gringer is focused on claiming a British record fifth Olympic medal after being assured she will be competing in Rio despite missing out on initial selection. (The Scotsman, print edition)

Andy Murray made £16m over the past year, but he is only the sixth highest-paid tennis player in the world. (Daily Record)

The hero of Scotland Under-20s' historic victory over Australia on Tuesday, Darcy Graham, will play no further part in the World Rugby Under-20 Championship after being ruled out with concussion.(The Scotsman)

Huw Jones owes his Scotland call-up to a Wikipedia entry, with Glasgow Warriors analyst Gavin Vaughan having spotted a Saltire icon beside the Welsh-sounding name of the player brought up in South Africa. (The Herald)

Huw Jones, who is in the Scotland squad for their Japan Tour this month, is proud of his Scottish roots despite the 23-year-old Stormers centre's English parents having moved away when he was two and having made his name as a rugby player in South Africa.(The Courier)