Rangers in hunt for centre-back as desperate need identified, multiple options being explored

Rangers have their eyes on a new centre-back to address their current issues and make ground on rivals Celtic in the Scottish Premiership, TEAMtalk can reveal.

Rangers are having a very difficult season and find themselves 15 points behind Celtic in the title race, this has heaped pressure on current manager Philippe Clement.

The club are trying to help by bringing in some bodies this month and sources have shared some of their plans.

Gers are in desperate need of defensive reinforcements and sources have confirmed they are working on bringing in a new centre-back in this window. Multiple agents have been contacted looking for a target they can bring in on loan.

It’s also understood the club would prefer to sign a younger player on loan this month, with the potential to make it permanent in the summer. They are also looking at experienced central defenders who they can snap up in the summer for a good price or on a pre-contract deal.

A good example of this is Dinamo defender Samy Mmaee who was looked at by Rangers at the beginning of this month. There was a chance he could leave for more game time, however new manager Fabio Cannavaro plans to use him in his squad.

Rangers want to push Dessers out

It is well known that Rangers do not have a lot of money to spend and will need to offload players this month if they are to bring in any new faces. One player who they are trying to sell is striker Cyriel Dessers.

The 30-year-old has not gone down well with Rangers fans and despite scoring 34 goals for the club since his arrival in the summer of 2023, his performances have been far below expectations. The club were keen to sell him last summer and hired intermediaries to find an offer.

There were multiple Serie A sides keen but no offer came to pass and he stayed at Ibrox this season, he is now aware the club want to sell him and sources have confirmed he is ready to leave.

Rangers would then look to bolster their attacking options and that is likely to happen towards the end of this month when the likes of Dessers have been moved on. Hamza Igamane is now regarded as the number one striker by the club and they want to bring in a player who can help him in getting the goals.

Rangers round-up: Prem pressure on

Premier League sides are pressuring Rangers for Igamane amid his good form at the club.

TEAMtalk is aware that Everton are one of the sides pursuing the 11-goal forward.

Meanwhile, sources have stated that Leeds man Joe Gelhardt was on the radar of late.

Rangers would like an option to buy him after a loan period, but finances could mean that is not possible.