der Berliner

Let's hope Dessers hits the ground running. Cifuentes is a CM, so no reason to stop hunting him.

Usually, it is a reversal of the games of the season before. Aberdeen aside, we faced all these teams away first last season. thus, you can envisage that we will meet all these teams bar Aberdeen away from home near/post split.

Next season's Tillman, without a "possible-buy and buy-back and if-he-turns-out-cool-revoke-all-the-rest" - clause. His stats say right-sided forward and are not that bad, remains to be seen whether he's starter though. You really hope that a fit Hagi, Lawrence, Roofe, and even Lowry are all included in Beale's vision of a brutally attack-minded Rangers side.

Where are those cool days when a 10 was just the second of two main strikers ... 😭

Zukowski has left for Slask Wroclaw for an undisclosed fee.

They signed him on a free last summer, and he's contracted till 2026. Good league, good club, long contract, hence the fee. His stats are fine.

We still have Roofe ... 😱

Blast from the past ... and present: Jason Cummings scored a hat-trick for the (underdog) Central Coast Mariners in their 6-1 rout away to Melbourne City and secures them the title. This season: 29 games, 21 goals, 6 assists. Hope you can watch this video.

Oh the drama ... Rangers: Cyriel Dessers keen on Ibrox move “Dessers remains keen on a move to Ibrox and is waiting for Rangers to make another offer. “Reports in Italy claimed the Nigerian international had turned down a switch to Ibrox. Sources close to all sides of the deal are adamant that is not the case. Dessers is very much keen on a move to Scotland and for the chance to play in the Champions League. “Rangers have already made multiple bids for the striker but have still to reach an agreement with Cremonese. The Ibrox side are expected to go back in for the 28-year-old but won’t be rushed into a deal.” https://www.footballfancast.com/rangers-scottish-premership-cyriel-dessers-transfer-news-ibrox/ Elsewhere ... Arfield completes transfer to new club after Rangers exit Scott Arfield has completed his transfer switch to the MLS. The former Rangers midfielder has finalised a move to Charlotte FC. He has signed a one-year deal with the option of a further season into 2025. https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/sport/23608651.arfield-completes-transfer-new-club-rangers-exit/ Best of luck to Scott!

IF he rejected a move to us, I'd drop interest in him. I prefer Nacho's sentiment regarding targeted players: "If players do not want to come to Rangers, it is their loss, not ours."

After his goal against almighty San Marino at international level, interest in Glen Kamara is sure not dwindling. Whether links to Spain, France, and England will bear any fruit remains to be seen, as we supposedly have put a 5m price on his head. We can only dream ... and wish him well.

Truth be told, he was a fringe player playing with Bayern's u23s. Considering this, 5m was quite steep anyway, IMHO - and you fully understand the debate about that figure in here. As has been said, the loan and buy option (like we had with Kent and Sands) is quite normal, so you see what you get. But going back on this in this triple-deal of loan + buy + buy back is quite strange, no matter whether Bayern thinks he is worth more. I am pretty sure that had we decided that we want him, but he's not worth the initially agreed 5m, Bayern would have stood their ground, no matter what. I am also pretty sure that we won't spend a penny more than 5m on Tillman, if at all.

I did check the German mag Kicker and they have indeed objected/reneged on that 5m buy-option. A bit strange that ...

Actually, it looks like TM got entangled with his countless Italian loans. He's indeed with Atalanta, signed for them in 2020 for € 8m from Eindhoven, so probably a 4-year deal or the like.

So disappointed with the CL final. Inter set out to defend and City could break that. It was looking like our toils in the Premiership, only at a higher level. The most disappointing aspect: once City scored, Inter came out and it became a really entertaining game (for the neutral observer). Why the heck did they not play like that all along, since City had their hands full at defending their attacks ... could have been a far more entertaining game from the off.

I would be wary with Panzo! No injury reported since 20/21 ... 😱

TM says that it is also the end of the Empoli deal. Current club: UC Sampdoria Joined: Jan 2, 2023 Contract expires: Jun 30, 2023 On loan from: FC Empoli Contract there expires:Jun 30, 2023

Added Sam Lammers. According to TM, he will be a freebie soon. IN - Sam Lammers (26) - ST, Dutch, Empoli - contract 6/2023 - LINK - TM

That is actually thread-necromancy! 😉

Well, Dessers looks a goalscorer on paper, 103 goals and 37 assists in 212 games, mostly with Utrecht, Genk, Feyenoord, and Breda. With Cremonese 7 goals and 2 assists in 29 games.

Butland added to the signed list, plus a new link to a US-Arsenal centre half, who we might get for 2m ... IN - Auston Trusty (24) - CB, US, Arsenal - contract till 6/20xx - LINK - TM Earlier this week, The Daily Mail reported that Rangers are keen on signing Trusty. The Scottish Premiership club are reportedly ready to sign the USA international defender in a £2 million transfer deal. And now Goal are reporting that Arsenal could decide to offload the 24-year-old, who spent the 2022-23 season on loan at Birmingham City in the Championship. The report, written by journalist Charles Watts, has claimed that “Arsenal will hold talks with Trusty this summer to decide what the next step is for the defender”. “Whether they cash in on him now, or opt to send him out on loan again remains to be seen,” adds the report. “But it’s highly doubtful he remains in north London next season to be a part of Arteta’s senior squad.”

Possibly. Many teams want quite a bit of cash (and why shouldn't they) ... but one wonders who Beale's prime candidate is.

A run-down of some of the strikers linked (snatched from Rangersnews) ... No fewer than 10 names have been mentioned this summer, as Rangers target a couple of strikers to firstly replace Alfredo Morelos but to beef up a lacklustre attack. Josh Maja tops list of potential new Rangers strikers Rangers love a pre-contract signing and, even if Michael Beale hinted the club might spend on a striker this summer, there’s certainly no harm in targeting one via this market. Bordeaux striker Josh Maja has been routinely linked and – out of all ten strikers – stands out as the most prominent in the Rangers transfer news. According to reports, any Ibrox move for the 24-year-old could be dependent on Bordeaux’s shaky promotion efforts. Sam Lammers: a Dutch of class? Then there was a link to to Serie A striker Sam Lammers, who is on loan at Sampdoria from Atalanta, with the big Dutch striker out of contract in Italy come the end of the season. Rangers boss Beale was in Italy earlier in the season, with plenty wondering if the 26-year-old ex-PSV hitman might be the subject of his interest. Michael Olunga: relative unknown with impressive record The last of the out-of-contract bunch is prolific Kenyan forward Michael Olunga, who has just fired Al-Duhail to the title with 29 goals in 26 games this season. The 6ft3 hitman also has an impressive record at international level, having scored 21 goals in 48 games for Kenya, and it appears we could certainly do worse despite the forward’s lesser known profile. Tasos Douvikas: bright Euro striker with burgeoning reputation Rangers will reportedly have to pay up to £6m to sign Greek striker Tasos Douvikas, who has just had an explosive season in the Eredivisie with FC Utrecht. An expensive option for sure but, at 23, the forward’s value is only likely to increase, and he continues to bang them in during his current side’s hunt for European football. Cyriel Dessers: blown hot and cold but a potential masterstroke Belgian-born Nigerian international Cyriel Dessers is another who was linked to Rangers from Serie A, the striker having just suffered relegation with new side Cremonese, for whom he scored 10 times this season. The Italians reportedly paid FC Genk around £5.5m (€6.5m) only last summer to sign the 28-year-old forward and it would surely cost Rangers if they harbour ambitions of bringing Dessers to Glasgow. Matija Frigan: untested on the big stage amid big demands Another striker from Europe being linked to Rangers is HNK Rijeka forward Matija Frigan, who has just netted 15 times in an impressive season in Croatia. The latest suggests Rangers will have to pay over £5m to sign the 20-year-old, with the forward also reportedly interesting Croatia’s biggest club Dinamo Zagreb. Petar Ratkov: affordable option amongst Rangers-linked strikers Another young striker plying his trade further east on the continent is Serbian teenager Petar Ratkov, with Rangers now routinely mentioned alongside the 14-goal forward. Rangers are said to be one of six clubs tailing Ratkov, who has also reportedly been the subject of an initial offer of about £2.5m from the MLS. Ike Ugbo: Chelsea links but little else to entice Rangers fans One of the more interesting Rangers striker links of the transfer window, Ike Ugbo came through at the Chelsea Academy and Beale will be well aware of his attributes. Now plying his trade with Ligue 2 Troyes, the 24-year-old Canada international has had quite an interesting career. But his two goals in 25 French second-tier appearances have done little to encourage supporters. Jerry Yates: could he finally be set to get Rangers move? There was a time when barely a week went by without Rangers being mentioned next to Blackpool striker Jerry Yates, who had an explosive run of nine goals in 13 Championships games earlier in the season. After suffering relegation back to League One, manager Neil Critchley claims the club want to keep Yates, who has been rated at £5m and reportedly been watched by Rangers several times this season. Haji Wright: “Rangers have bid rejected” Last by but no means least is USA international striker Haji Wright, who has reportedly been the subject of a rejected £7m bid from Rangers this summer. The Antalyaspor forward might back up Beale’s suggestion that Rangers will have to spend to get quality in forward positions, but are Wright’s 15 goals in the Super Lig really worth it? What’s incredible is that, despite the high number of reports, Beale was clear earlier in the season that he has his eye on one “specific” target and so far no transfer sleuths have been able to deduce who he was talking about.

... seems to be a freebie soon and ... fits the bill: Achilles tendon surgery - Return unknown 😝

I for one wouldn't mind Shankland, as he's certainly a finisher and proven scorer in Scotland ... where we have to earn our corn. I would likewise prefer him to play alongside another striker though, be it Colak or another centre-forward. Sakala should stay on either "wing"/left-right-sided-attack-slot/however you want to call it. Hearts will sure want some hard cash, but 3-4m should be enough. So far, we have done well in the free-transfer market and there are enough strikers at the end of their contracts too, this list is just the 23-30 year old age bracket. Still, someone who knows the way about in Scotland might be a reasonable shout.