Priority target: Rangers discussing move for dream Cantwell replacement

Glasgow Rangers are in urgent need of new signings. Yes, the Ibrox side may have already secured the services of seven new players, but in reality, not all of them are quite ready for the rigours and demands of senior football at the present time.

This means Philippe Clement must make another two or three additions in the next week or so to bulk out his first-team squad, especially in the midfield area.

Joan Jordan, the Sevilla midfielder, emerged as a target a couple of weeks ago, with Fabrizio Romano sharing that the Gers had an offer rejected for the player.

It was a loan offer, yet the La Liga side didn’t have plans to cover any of his salary for him to move to Scotland.

Now, according to Fernando Serrano, Rangers have submitted a new bid, offering to cover 40% of his wages while on loan. Could this see the Spanish veteran arrive at Ibrox shortly?

He might not be the only player to make the move north, as Clement is in talks to sign a young talent from the Premier League…

Rangers closing in on move to sign Premier League midfielder

According to Africa Foot, the Light Blues are in advanced talks to seal a loan deal for Hannibal Mejbri, who is currently playing for Manchester United, with the youngster deemed to be a ‘priority target’.

Danish side FC Copenhagen are also considered to be in the running for the Tunisian international midfielder, but it appears that his preference is to move to Rangers as he seeks regular first-team football.

Mejbri featured for United against the Light Blues in the recent pre-season friendly at Murrayfield Stadium last week. His performance clearly impressed Clement, who is now close to bringing another new signing to the club.

This move may have been acted on quicker than usual due to Todd Cantwell handing in a transfer request at the club as he seeks a move away from the Light Blues.

Todd Cantwell’s future at Rangers

Following the friendly defeat to Birmingham City on Wednesday evening, Clement spoke to the press afterwards.

“I just want to clarify something. Todd Cantwell came to my office a while ago. We have a really good relationship and we talked a long time about that,” said the Belgian.

“He came a while ago to say he feels ready for another adventure, that he wants another challenge.”

The Englishman only joined in January 2023, making 64 appearances in all competitions, scoring 14 times while grabbing 12 assists, not bad statistics, yet he failed to really make an impression when it truly mattered.

Injury issues hampered his first full season at Ibrox, failing to really make his mark when the club were challenging Celtic for the Premiership title.

The truth is, he failed to really build upon his first few months at the club, where he registered 11 goal contributions in just 20 games, looking like he could turn into a solid signing by Michael Beale.

If Clement can make a substantial profit on the former Norwich City gem, then it could fund future arrivals.

Hannibal Mejbri’s 2023/24 season in numbers

The Man United youngster is clearly desperate for some regular first-team football in order to make his mark in the senior game.

Last season, he made just ten appearances for the Old Trafford side during the first half of the season, scoring against Brighton, yet Erik ten Hag only started the playmaker four times.

This led to the 21-year-old joining Sevilla for a six-month loan spell, but it didn’t quite work out as planned, playing just six times for the Spanish side.

Prior to that, the Tunisian had shone in the Championship with Birmingham City during the 2022/23 season, gaining regular first-team football at a high level.

Why Mejbri can be the perfect Cantwell replacement

Throughout his entire loan spell, Mejbri missed just eight league matches, showing that he was fit for the vast majority of the campaign.

During those 38 games, he registered six goal contributions – one goal and five assists – created six big chances, averaged 0.9 key passes and 0.5 successful dribbles per match.

Among his teammates, he ranked second in the squad for big chances created, third for key passes per game and tenth for successful dribbles each match. The statistics may not be outstanding, but it gave the United supporters a glimpse of his talents in the second tier.

It wasn’t just his attacking talents on show, as his work rate during games for the Blues was impressive, with John Eustace even praising him after just a few months at the club, saying:

“The way he has played in the last couple of games has been phenomenal,” he said. “He has broken records for total distance [covered], all that kind of stuff.

“It was important we also used the squad. [Juninho] Bacuna came in today and did well and Hanni came on for that last half hour and was very good.”

While Cantwell could flick a switch and turn on the magic at a whim, his work rate at times wasn’t exactly excellent.

It appears as though this side of the game is what Mejbri – who has been dubbed “relentless” by journalist Steven Railston – embraces and Clement requires players who are willing to fight until the very end, something which the Ibrox faithful didn’t see too often during the dying embers of last season.

If the club do sign Jordan, his experience at the heart of the midfield, coupled with Mejbri’s prodigious attacking talents, could see the pair form a juicy partnership through the centre of the field for the club next term.

It will be a gamble, no doubt about that, but there is no doubt that if the promising midfielder can secure a regular spot in the starting XI, he could cause chaos among opposition defences.