Rangers

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As Rangers prepare for their Premiership opener with Hearts on Saturday, manager Philippe Clement has been speaking to Sky Sports, external.

Here's the best of what the Belgian had to say:

On Rangers' summer...

"We knew we needed a rebuild, a rebuild is not a renovation.

"As manager you'd like to do a renovation, change one, two or three players and keep the core of your team, but that was not the case.

"We had an older squad, six players leaving for free, they were at the end of their contracts, that changed a lot."

Is it a bigger rebuild than you expected?

"It's a busy period that started later than normal because of the Euros.

"The club has already done a lot of things using the budget we have, but we don't have a budget to spend money just because we have the money, so we have to do it wisely."

How have things changed?

"You step into a club and you don't know the club well, the squad well, every detail of every contract.

"For me it was a big surprise six players were out of contract. We had some we wanted to keep, but they took another way because they could earn much more money.

"Those things you can't take into account in October [when I was appointed]."

On Todd Cantwell's transfer request...

"I kept the door open all the time these past weeks. It's already a while ago since he came to me for the first time with [the transfer request].

"As long as a player is here and we believe in his qualities, the door is always open [for him to stay]."

Are you where you want to be?

"We made really good steps this pre-season in ways people don't see because they don't know the past or the details.

"We're still very busy in the transfer market. I'm very convinced Vaclav Cerny will be a really, really important signing and I'm convinced we can make a good start to the season."

On potential interest in Lawrence Shankland...

"That's a name that comes a lot, but there also other names. It stays the same, I will never speak about rumours and for sure not players we play against.

Would you back Rangers to win the league?

"I'll put all my effort into that. That's what we need to do. We know [Celtic's summer] is a small renovation with a few details and they can build on their core.

"We have a big rebuild. Let us first make a good foundation and build our house over the next couple of weeks and months to make it much stronger."

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Amid fan discontent and a pre-season of upheaval, are Rangers in danger of watching history repeat itself?

The Athletic's Jordan Campbell feels that's very much the case as Philippe Clement prepares to lead his side into the new campaign in the midst of a tumultuous summer.

Unconvincing displays in recent friendlies, coupled with their transfer dealings so far, have prompted concern in a rising number of disgruntled supporters.

Following a disappointing end to last term, Campbell says the club are heading into the new season with "a lot of uncertainty" surrounding them.

Rangers will play their home game at Hampden up to early September due to delayed work ongoing at Ibrox, while speculation continues to link captain James Tavernier and fellow experienced defender Connor Goldson with moves away.

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, Campbell feels the mood of the fans risks "going from discontent to apathy" if certain issues are not addressed in the coming month.

"Three years in a row Celtic have won the league," he adds. "If you asked Rangers fans in the summer they won their first title in a decade if they thought that would happen, they'd never have believed it.

"It's down to mismanagement at the club, not selling their best assets at the right time, not making the money. They’ve allowed Celtic to become the dominate team again.

"It's like Rangers are caught on their heels again with a season starting. It feels like a fire sale is upon us, then that doesn’t leave you a lot of time to rebuild a squad. There's a lot of pressure to get that right over the next few weeks.

"Every transition [season] seems to lead to a botched plan in November/December. A new guy gets to the end of the season, they tail off because the players aren't enough, then the summer comes and they bring in eight or nine players.

"They are very much in danger of repeating history here. Rangers really do need three or four indisputable starters to shift the needle."

Joan Jordan's departure from Sevilla to Rangers is about to be unblocked after a loan purchase with an option to buy of £4.2m was agreed for the midfielder. (Jose Manuel Garcia on X)

Rangers have pulled out of talks to sign 30-year-old Jordan. (Scottish Sun)

Rangers and Strasbourg have had bids rejected by Porto for 23-year-old winger Goncalo Borges. (Record)

Forward Cyriel Dessers knows speculation is rife over his future at Rangers - with a move to Greece mooted - but he insists he is going nowhere. (Daily Record)

Sam Lammers made his Twente Enschede debut then backed himself to put his Rangers misery behind him. (The Herald)

Valur Reykjavik manager Arnar Gretarsson, whose side play at St Mirren in the Europa Conference League this week, says his dream move to Rangers was ruined by an Icelandic FA rule - and the Ibrox club signed Alexei Mikhailichenko instead. (The Herald)

Read the rest of Monday's gossip.

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Philippe Clement refused to be drawn on transfer speculation after his side's 4-4 pre-season draw with Union Berlin in Germany.

Although Rangers have added six new players to the squad over the summer, there are still persistent links to Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland.

“I don’t go into rumours and I will not speak about players of teams we are going to play against," Clement told press after the game in Berlin.

Asked if there were any other signings incoming, he replied: "That is a good question as a journalist but you know I can't answer that because as long as there is no pen on paper, there is nothing in this world. It can be five minutes, five weeks… I don’t know, but there will be other signings."

The high-scoring draw means Rangers have conceded 10 goals in three pre-season games, although the manager was relaxed about that particular stat.

"Am I concerned about losing so many goals? No, of course I want fewer goals against but for example, against Man United we had three shots on goal and they made two goals," Clement said.

"It is not like Jack Butland played a bad game. You need to look a little through the stats also because against Man United we played a good defensive game and today in a lot of moments we played a good defensive game.

“But we made a few mistakes that in the future will not happen anymore because we learn out of that. That is the story with new players and a new squad, you need to build out of something so mistakes come along the way and you need to learn and work on it. That is in every team in the world.

"Defensively, [there are] things to work on. We [conceded] two similar goals and spoke about that at half-time. That is normal with new players, they need to learn things and it’s by mistakes, that is part of the journey."

Rangers are waiting on Seville midfielder Joan Jordan to rubber-stamp his move to Ibrox after they had a bid accepted for their number one transfer target. (Daily Record)

Boss Philippe Clement expects James Tavernier to be a Rangers player next season - but would not be drawn on the possibility of Heart of Midlothian striker Lawrence Shankland joining him at Ibrox. (Scottish Sun)

Former Rangers left-back Gregory Vignal is concerned new signing Clinton Nsiala - the 20-year-old centre-back signed from AC Milan - will lack the leaders in the Ibrox dressing room to ease him into Scottish football. (Daily Mail)

Former Rangers midfielder John Fleck has been training at their Auchenhowie base as he considers his future after an injury-hit season with Blackburn Rovers. (Daily Record)

The arrival of Jort van der Sande appears to have knocked former Celtic and Hearts forward Tony Watt down the pecking order at Dundee United. (The Courier)

Ex-Ibrox forward Kris Boyd says his fellow pundit Chris Sutton "got it bang on" when he doubted wantaway playmaker Todd Cantwell had the mentality to be a Rangers player. (Scottish Sun)

Ex-captain Barry Ferguson says Rangers have "required major surgery for some time" and that Clement is showing he is brave enough to carry it out. (Daily Record)

Read the rest of Sunday's gossip.

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Rangers manager Philippe Clement was delighted with Tom Lawrence's two-goal display in a 4-4 pre-season draw with Union Berlin after highlighting the attacking midfielder's position as a potential problem.

Clement admitted in midweek that Rangers would need to find someone to fill the number 10 role after Todd Cantwell asked for a transfer.

The Belgian also highlighted the loss of on-loan Brighton & Hove Albion forward Abdallah Sima.

"It's important to have offensive players who have stats," he told Rangers TV. "With Sima, we lost somebody who had a lot of stats last season, so we need to have other players who make up for that.

"And it's important in the number 10 role that you have someone who is in the right positions and makes the right runs and then, with the way we play football, you will always get chances to score.

"Tom did that role brilliantly. I am really pleased about the way he played, not only with the ball but without the ball."

Lawrence is looking to kick-start his Rangers career after spending a year on the sidelines before making 16 starts last season.

"It's good to get a pre-season under my belt," the Wales international said. "I feel fit and ready to go, so that's the main thing.

"It's always good to score goals, especially in my position. I need to create goals and score goals and if I don't then it's on me. So that's what I need to do this season."

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Cyriel Dessers and Tom Lawrence both scored twice as Rangers ended their pre-season preparations with a 4-4 draw away to Union Berlin.

Midfielder Janik Haberer gave the hosts a fifth-minute lead at Stadion An der Alten Försterei, but striker Dessers round the home goalkeeper to slot home an equaliser eight minutes later.

Striker Jordan Siebatcheu restored the lead after 21 minutes from the penalty spot, only for midfielder Lawrence to fire in from just inside the penalty box twice within five minutes just after the half-hour mark.

Haberer's close-range finish levelled the scores again at the break for the side who just escaped relegation after finishing 15th in the Bundesliga last season and winger David Preu found the bottom corner just short of the hour.

Dessers, though, had the final say as he evaded a challenge on the edge of the six-yard box before prodding through the goalkeeper's leg with 22 minutes remaining.

Captain James Tavernier started for Rangers, while returning loanee winger Oscar Cortes was also in from the start and striker Danilo appeared from the bench as they work their way back from injury.

Utility man Dujon Sterling was left out after suffering a minor muscle injury, while midfielder Kieran Dowell missed out through illness.

Rangers next weekend travel to face Hearts in their Scottish Premiership season opener.

Rangers midfielder Jose Cifuentes' year-long loan with Cruzeiro in Brazil is to be cut short and the 25-year-old Colombian is on his way to Greek club Aris Thessaloniki on a fresh 12-month loan. (Daily Record), external

Toulouse and clubs in Major League Soccer are favourites to sign Edier Ocampo, who is currently with Atlético Nacional in his Colombian homeland, but Rangers and Hellas Verona also want the 20-year-old right-back. (Colombia Scouts), external

Rangers centre-half Connor Goldson has flown to Germany for a medical before completing his transfer to Aris Limassol. (Kerkida), external

Rangers manager Philippe Clement insists the ongoing rebuild at Ibrox "takes time" as he plays down concerns about the team's pre-season form. (Record), external

Read Saturday's Scottish gossip

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“Rangers it is a worldwide known club, if you go to in terms of Scotland there is nothing bigger."

Vaclav Cerny has expressed his intentions of delivering success to Rangers during his season-long loan.

The 26-year-old, who played alongside Danilo at Ajax, is keen to bring his European experience to the club and to link up with Brazilian again.

“Where the pressure is obvious, that makes it even more beautiful I think to achieve things at a club like this.

“I can't wait to play with him [Danilo] again, as with the other guys who play here but with Danilo there was always this special connection we talked about up until today so I can't wait to do it again.

“It is part of this club to be able to win trophies and I think the main goal for this season that I am coming here is to do that."

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New signing Vaclav Cerny "can't wait to get started" at Rangers after joining on a season-long loan from Wolfsburg.

The Czech Republic international - who represented his country at the recent Euro 2024 - explained his switch to Ibrox moved quickly after being sold on manager Phillipe Clement's vision after their initial discussion.

"It's a very nice day for me, I'm happy to be here and I can't wait to get started," he told RangersTV.

"From the first talk, I had a very good feeling. From there on, it went very fast, I was happy with the contact and I just couldn't wait to get down here and get started.

"The talks with the managers, the things he wants to achieve matches what I want to achieve and I'm just glad it's going to be at this beautiful club."

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Negotiations are at an advanced stage for Rangers to sign on loan 21-year-old Manchester United midfielder Hannibal Mejbri, who had an unsuccessful spell with Sevilla and rejected a loan move with an option to buy to FC Copenhagen as the Tunisia international enters the final year of his Old Trafford contract. (Africafoot), external

Sevilla are demanding that Rangers pay 60% of Joan Jordan's wages and agree to a mandatory purchase of between £2.5m and £4.2m next summer for the 30-year-old midfielder after the Ibrox club offered to pay 40% of his salary during a proposed year-long loan. (Gol Digital), external

Vaclav Cerny has handed over his company car, will miss the annual team photo session and has started following Rangers on Instagram after an agreement was reached for the 26-year-old Wolfsburg winger to move on loan only a year after arriving from Twente. (AZ WAZ), external

Twente sporting director Arnold Bruggink has confirmed the Dutch club are "working" on signing 27-year-old Rangers forward Sam Lammers "but we're not there yet". (Tubantia), external

Selling Sam Lammers to Twente for £2.7m could unlock the money Rangers need to tempt Heart of Midlothian to part with Lawrence Shankland, with the Edinburgh club likely to demand at least £3m for the 28-year-old Scotland striker. (Daily Record), external

Queens Park Rangers' move for Slovenian striker Zan Celar means the Championship club could be open to selling Lyndon Dykes, with Rangers reigniting their interest in the 28-year-old as an alternative signing target to fellow Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland. (HITC), external

Basiktas plan to make an official offer soon for Rangers captain James Tavernier and the 32-year-old English right-back is keen on being reunited with former Ibrox manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst. (Duhuliye), external

Rangers vice-captain Connor Goldson agreed personal terms in principle with Aris Limassol before returning for Wednesday’s friendly against Birmingham City and the clubs are close to agreeing a fee for the 31-year-old centre-back. (Football Insider), external

As he looks for a striker, Raith Rovers manager Ian Murray has revealed that former Rangers 22-year-old Dapo Mebude, who was last with Oostende, has left after a short trial. (The Courier), external

Read Friday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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"If you play for Rangers you can’t present yourself like that, plain and simple," was the blunt verdict of Leon Balogun following Wednesday's friendly loss to Birmingham City.

The English League One side were 2-1 winners at St Andrews, with veteran defender Balogun telling Rangers TV: “Not good enough, quite frankly.

"If you play the way we played in the first half then you have to seriously question yourself."

Balogun, 36, added that he was "quite mad" about the performance and hopes to see a big improvement in time for the Premiership opener at Tynecastle on 3 August.

"I don’t want to get into panic mode or anything but that’s just a very honest assessment," he said. "In the second half we showed a bit more.

"Obviously we are still learning, we have a lot of young players in the team, we have a few new players in the team

"There will be mistakes made. We made a lot of them. We just need to make sure – because there’s 10 days left until the kick-off of the season – that we eradicate them.

"Even throughout the season there will be mistakes but we have to minimise them and make sure we don’t make those type of mistakes."

Rangers face Union Berlin on Saturday in their final warm-up for the new campaign.

Rangers have made a fresh approach to take 30-year-old Sevilla midfielder Joan Jordan on loan by increasing the percentage of his salary they would be willing to pay. (Fernando Serrano on X), external

Twente are in talks with Rangers over a deal worth more than £2m to sign 27-year-old forward Sam Lammers, who arrived last summer for £3.5m but ended the season on loan to Utrecht. (Anthony Joseph on X), external

Scotland youth winger Kevin Hanratty, for whom Aberdeen once rejected offers from Rangers and Aston Villa, is on trial with Swansea City after the 21-year-old left Pittodrie. (Football Insider), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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Rangers sustained their third pre-season friendly defeat in a row, 2-1 against Birmingham City at St Andrew's.

The match marked one year since the passing of Trevor Francis, who played for both clubs. Both sets of players applauded the Englishman prior to kick-off.

James Tavernier's own goal at a corner gave the hosts an early lead. The captain played the opening 45 minutes after missing the weekend loss to Manchester United.

Alfie May netted Birmingham's second before the break.

Winger Scott Wright, who like Tavernier has been linked with a move from Ibrox, was a half-time substitute and reduced Rangers' deficit.

With Rangers having received a bid from an unnamed club for Connor Goldson, the defender had left the squad to discuss the potential move. Leon Balogun partnered recent signing Clinton Nsiala in central defence.

Alex Lowry and Cole McKinnon started and fellow youngsters Findlay Curtis, Robbie Fraser, Leon King, Bailey Rice and Archie Stevens got game time in the second period.

Rangers, having beaten Hamilton, drawn with Standard Liege and lost to Ajax, complete their pre-season programme away to Union Berlin on Saturday then visit Hearts in their Scottish Premiership opener on 3 August.

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Captain James Tavernier has been named in the starting line-up for Wednesday's friendly match away to Birmingham City but vice-captain Connor Goldson was not in the squad, with the latter discussing a potential departure after a bid was received.

Both players have been linked with moves, with reports earlier this week indicating central defender Goldson, 31, had travelled to Cyprus to undergo a medical with Aris Limassol.

Right-back Tavernier, 32, was not included in the squad for the weekend loss to Manchester United. Winger Scott Wright, also linked with a move away from Ibrox, started against United and was named as a substitute against Birmingham.

Recent goalkeeper signing Liam Kelly, returning to Rangers for a second spell, has replaced regular first choice Jack Butland for the game in the Midlands, with Lewis Budinauckas the back-up keeper on the bench.

Alex Lowry, who missed much of last season injured after a loan spell at Hearts, was also given at start by Clement.

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Wolfsburg winger Vaclav Cerny, 26, is close to joining Rangers on loan. (Florian Plettenberg on X), external

Rangers and Trabzonspor are locked in talks over a potential move to Turkey for Ibrox captain James Tavernier and an agreement is close after the 32-year-old right-back agreed personal terms. (TeamTalk), external

Connor Goldson's signing talks with Aris Limassol have been put on hold and the centre-half returned from Cyprus to be part of the Rangers squad for their friendly with Birmingham City while the Ibrox club are holding out for more than the £1m being offered by Trabzonspor for captain James Tavernier. (Scottish Sun), external

Rangers fans have photographed Connor Goldson seemingly boarding a flight with his teammates to Birmingham - just 24 hours after reports from Cyprus claimed the 31-year-old centre-half was over there for a medical with Aris Limassol. (Daily Record), external

Aris Limassol have confirmed they are close to signing an English centre-half but will not divulge his name, saying that completing the deal is not easy as "it involves several moving parts". (Football Scotland), external

Trabzonspor have revealed they want to sign Burnley striker Wout Weghorst amid rumours that the there is also interest from Rangers in the 31-year-old. (Daily Record), external

Heart of Midlothian have had no approach from any club for 28-year-old Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland despite reports suggesting renewed interest from Rangers. (Hearts Standard), external

Rangers winger Scott Wright appears destined for the Championship, with Sheffield Wednesday, Preston North End and Derby County having all made enquiries for the 26-year-old, but each also have other options. (Darren Witcoop on X), external

Read the rest of today's Scottish football gossip here.

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Ross McCausland is setting his sights on becoming a Rangers regular this season.

The 21-year-old made 39 appearances for the Glasgow club last term, scoring four goals and setting up five.

However, the winger was in the starting line-up for 18 of those matches.

The Northern Ireland international says "there are quite a few" lessons he can take from the experience he gained last campaign.

"I’d say something I want to achieve this season is to be a regular in the games, as well as getting my numbers up in terms of goals and assists." he told RangersTV, external.

"I played in a lot of games and in some quite big situations; there's a lot of stuff I can take from last season into this one.

"The biggest thing would be trying to be as involved in the games as I can, being smart on the ball, and trying to outsmart someone who is bigger when you need to find something different.

"All the teams we play against will play in a different way and you need to adapt in order to hurt them in some ways."

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The draw for the last 16 of the Scottish League Cup will take place on Sunday.

It will be broadcast live on Premier Sports following their coverage of Motherwell v Partick Thistle at Fir Park, which kicks off at 15:00 BST.

The top-flight's five European representatives - holders Rangers, Celtic, Hearts, Kilmarnock and St Mirren - will enter the draw and will also be seeded, along with the three best group winners.

All last-16 ties are scheduled to played on the weekend of 17/18 August.

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Rangers could test the strength of Heart of Midlothian's resolve to keep hold of captain Lawrence Shankland this summer, with the Scotland striker's name back on the Ibrox wanted list as manager Philippe Clement makes a U-turn after deciding against a January move for the 28-year-old. (Record), external

Fiorentina have agreed an £840,000 per year salary with Ianis Hagi, but it is unclear whether the Serie A club will be willing to pay the £2.9m fee being asked by Rangers for the 25-year-old Romania midfielder. (Sport Pe Surse), external

Vice-captain and defender Connor Goldson, 31, has reportedly undergone a medical with a view to leaving Rangers for Aris Limassol. (Football Scotland), external

Sheffield Wednesday have yet to make an official bid for Rangers winger Scott Wright despite the 26-year-old's agents having held provisional talks with the Championship club. (TeamTalk), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish gossip

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Rangers will meet either Dynamo Kyiv or Partizan Belgrade in the third round of qualifying for the Champions League.

Should the Ibrox side fail to progress, they will automatically progress straight into the Europa League.

However, Philippe Clement and his players will have their sights set on Uefa's premier club competition.

Here's a brief summary on what we know about the Govan club's potential European opposition...

Dynamo Kyiv

Sixteen-times winners of the Ukrainian top flight, Dynamo narrowly missed out on a 17th title last term after losing the league by just two points to rivals Shakhtar Donetsk.

They failed to qualify for Europe in 2023-24, losing to Besitkas at the play-off round stage of the Conference League.

A squad littered with Ukraine internationals, the name of former West Ham and Borussia Dortmund forward Andriy Yarmolenko, 34, will stand out.

But it was Vladyslav Vanat, 12 years Yarmolenko's younger, who was Dynamo's star man last season, scoring 14 goals in 30 games.

A match-up between Dynamo and Rangers would present an unusual scenario where neither team would play their home game at their own ground.

Dynamo will play their home leg in Lublin, Poland as conflict in Ukraine following the Russian invasion continues, while Rangers will host at Hampden because of delayed stadium work at Ibrox.

Partizan Belgrade

Just like Dynamo, Partizan lost out on their domestic league title to their fiercest rivals last season.

They finished second behind Red Star, who claimed the Serbian top-flight crown by a seven-point margin.

Partizan also faltered at the qualifying stage of the Conference League when they lost to Danish side FC Nordsjælland in the play-off round.

The Serbian side's attack is spearheaded by talented 24-year-old Brazilian Matheus Saldanha, who scored 18 goals last term and netted a late winner in their league opener against Napredak on Friday.