Glasgow Rangers have little more than a week to complete any business that they want to do before the summer transfer window officially slams shut.
Head of recruitment Nils Koppen has been a busy man over the last few months, with plenty of players moving in and out of Ibrox since the end of last season.
Jon McLaughlin, John Lundstram, Kemar Roofe, Ryan Jack, and Borna Barisic all left as free agents, whilst Connor Goldson has been sold on a permanent basis to Aris.
Meanwhile, Liam Kelly, Clinton Nsiala, Vaclav Cerny, Connor Barron, Hamza Igamane, Jefte, Mohammed Diomande, Oscar Cortes, and Robin Propper have all been signed to add to the squad.
Philippe Clement recently revealed that the Scottish giants must sell players before they are able to bring more in, and claimed that a number of current Gers outcasts know that they have been free to leave for a while.
This means that the Light Blues will need to find new homes for some of the players on the fringes of the squad in order to free up space for further additions, and one player who must be moved on is Ianis Hagi.
The latest on Ianis Hagi's situation at Rangers
The Romania international has been 'bombed' to the B team this summer and has not been part of Clement's first-team plans since his return to Glasgow from a season-long loan spell with Alaves.
According to Football Scotland, the two-footed attacker has never requested to move on from Ibrox and still has a desire to perform for the club this term.
The report claims that Hagi has never asked to seal a transfer to another club and that his omission from the squad has been Rangers and Clement's doing, rather than because of the player's actions.
All parties must now find a solution before the window slams shut next week as it has been made clear that he is not part of the team's plans, which means that a transfer appears to be the best option.
Hagi spent last season on loan with Alaves in LaLiga and struggled to find his best form, with a return of zero goals and two assists in 22 appearances.
He missed 69 matches through injury between January 2022 and January 2023 with a knee injury and made the move to Spain on a temporary basis to get back to playing regular football.
That could explain why the 25-year-old whiz did not contribute with goals and assists on a consistent basis in the Spanish top-flight, as the Gers loanee is still recovering from that long-term issue.
Unfortunately, Clement has seemingly decided that the attacking midfielder, who has produced 16 goals and 21 assists in 99 matches for Rangers, is not a part of his plans moving forward.
The Belgian boss could forget all about the Romanian ace, should he depart before the end of the window, by swooping to sign one of the club's reported transfer targets as his replacement.
Rangers' interest in Premier League starlet
Earlier this month, Football Scotland claimed that the Gers are one of the teams interested in signing Chelsea attacking midfielder Leo Castledine.
The report stated that the Light Blues have already made contact with the Premier League giants to discuss a potential swoop for the 19-year-old starlet.
It was revealed that the Scottish side would be keen to take the teenage maestro on a season-long loan with an option to make it permanent next summer, although there is no mention of how much they would be prepared to pay as part of that arrangement.
However, Chelsea would prefer to send him out on a straight loan deal as they view him as one of their most promising talents, and Scottish Premiership outfit Aberdeen are one team that would be willing to take him on loan.
The outlet added that there is also interest in Castledine from sides in the English Championship in the player, who was nominated for the Premier League 2 Player of the Season award last term.
This means that Rangers do face plenty of competition, in Scotland and England, to sign the talented young player before the window slams shut next week.
Why Rangers should sign Leo Castledine
Clement and Koppen must push to win the race for his signature, whether that is on loan or on loan with an option to buy, because he could be a brilliant replacement for Hagi.
The 19-year-old is an attacking midfielder and could come in if the Romania international can find a new club before the deadline, given his current status in limbo at Ibrox.
Castledine has only made one senior appearance for Chelsea in his career and this means that it would be a gamble of a signing for the Gers, but one that could pay off big time if he can fulfill his potential.
He is a number ten who can contribute with goals and assists on a regular basis for his side, on the basis of his form for the Blues at academy level.
U23 scout Antonio Mango hailed his "terrific" knack for finding space between the lines to make things happen in the final third, which is backed up by his statistics in the U18 and U21 teams for Chelsea.
Appearances
47
46
Goals
18
14
Assists
6
10
As you can see in the table above, Castledine has been a regular provider of goals and assists for the Premier League side's academy in recent years.
In the 2023/24 campaign, the £3k-per-week magician plundered a stunning ten goals and nine assists in 18 Premier League 2 matches, more than one goal contribution every game on average.
These statistics show that the Rangers target has the potential to be a fantastic attacking talent for Clement if he can even come close to translating those returns to first-team level with the Gers in the Premiership and the Europa League.
Imagine him & Diomande: Rangers identify "baller" as new target for Clement
The Light Blues are reportedly interested in a swoop for the Premier League starlet.
ByDan EmeryAug 18, 2024
He is an exciting young talent who could come in and allow the manager and the supporters to forget all about Hagi, who could move on in the next ten days, this summer.