Rangers to shatter homecoming talk for star man as Clement moves to secure important deal

Rangers are looking to keep John Lundstram tied down by offering him a new deal at the club
Contract talks between midfield man John Lundstram and his club, Rangers, are progressing, TEAMtalk can exclusively reveal.
Rangers have a number of players coming to the end of their current contracts and Philippe Clement is pushing the club to tie up the futures of a couple of its stars. One player who has been key is Lundstram and talks are progressing over a new deal.
The midfielder has missed just two Scottish Premiership games this season and has chipped in with four assists.
Clement, who took charge of Rangers in October and has inspired a turnaround of their fortunes, has made it clear he does not want to see top players leaving the club for nothing by their contracts expiring.
Lundstram has offers from clubs in the English Championship and will also be keeping an eye on the Premier League relegation battle as sources have stated a return to Sheffield United is not off the cards, should they get relegated, which looks very likely, given the Blades are bottom of the table and 10 points below the first safe side.
The Championship is familiar territory for the midfielder, who spent two seasons playing there with United before two in the Premier League ahead of his move to Scotland.
However, Lundstram’s desire is to stay at Ibrox and with his deal coming to an end in two months’ time, talks have been ongoing over a renewal that will keep him in Glasgow.
DON’T MISS: Rangers star to choose between four destinations after being told he must find new club
Discrepancy over contract length not a huge issue
It’s understood a minimum two-year deal is desired by the English midfielder. However, Rangers have a new direction in their recruitment, led by Nils Koppen, which aims to bring down the average age of their squad.
Lundstram will be 31 years old next year and it’s understood that a one-year extension with an option for another year is going to be the likely outcome of talks, which will allow Clement to have one of his key players for the campaign next year.
Rangers are in a tight race for the title against Celtic and next season they want to build again so they are in a position to battle for the Scottish Premiership trophy and have a good European campaign.
The recruitment team are working on finding young talent that they can sell on for a big fee in the future following the January signings of Oscar Cortes and Mohamed Diomande.
READ MORE: New Rangers transfer strategy explained as Koppen puts laser focus on signing one type of player