RANGERS PLOT BID FOR "FLAMBOYANT" £2M SENSATION

Glasgow Rangers are reportedly plotting a fresh approach for Swansea City starlet, Morgan Whittaker, having previously missed out on the promising forward back in January.

What's the latest on Whittaker to Rangers?

According to Football Scotland, the Ibrox outfit are seemingly still interested in signing the 22-year-old despite having been repeatedly rebuffed during the winter window, with the Light Blues having seen three bids rejected by the Championship side - the last of which was reportedly in the region of £2m.

This latest report suggests that Michael Beale and co would be ready to make another offer for the young Englishman, having already brought in both Kieran Dowell and Dujon Sterling in recent weeks.

The piece does add, however, that there could be a potential stumbling block if the Swans are to lose current boss Russell Martin to Southampton, with the club unlikely to sanction any player exits amid their search to find a suitable successor to the ex-Gers defender.

Should Rangers bid again for Whittaker?

Despite failing to acquire the former Derby County man earlier this year, it looks as if the Old Firm giants are intent on bringing in young Whittaker this time around, with the "flamboyant" ace - as hailed by talent scout Jacek Kulig - set to provide further depth to Beale's attacking ranks.

The Gers boss has only recently seen his options depleted following the news that both Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos are set to depart amid their expiring contracts, hence the need to snap up quality replacements sooner rather than later.

While Beale does already have players vying to fill the shoes of that departing duo, not all of the current squad have proven that they are up to the task, with Rabbi Matondo, in particular, having endured a difficult debut campaign in Scotland.

The former Schalke man - who signed on a £3m deal last summer - ended the 2022/23 season having provided just five assists and no goals in 28 games in all competitions, with Beale suggesting back in December that the Welshman was suffering a "crisis of confidence".

Having also been hampered by injury in the second half of the campaign, the 22-year-old's fortunes have not improved of late, with recent reports (The Scottish Daily Mail, print edition, page 118, April 29, 2023): suggesting that the club could allow the misfiring dud to move on this summer.

The addition of Whittaker, therefore, could represent a notable upgrade on the one-time Manchester City man, with the 6 foot 3 ace having enjoyed a promising spell on loan at Plymouth Argyle in the first half of the campaign, scoring nine goals and providing seven assists in 25 League One games.

While the former England youth international only added one further goal for his parent club after making his return to Wales in January, he has previously shown his class at youth level, bagging 44 goal involvements in just 53 games for Derby's U18's.

The elegant left-footer's creative quality was also on show during his time in England's third tier as he created seven big chances for his teammates and averaged 1.3 key passes per game, while Matondo, by contrast, created just four big chances and averaged only 0.8 key passes from his 19 Scottish Premiership outings.

Equally, Whittaker also appears to offer more defensively on the flanks after averaging 1.1 tackles per to prove himself something of an all-rounder, while the current Rangers asset averaged just 0.7 tackles per game in that time.

With Matondo evidently failing to cut it in Glasgow, the signing of the Swansea star could be the attacking upgrade that Beale will be craving.

2023-06-01T19:55:57Z dg43tfdfdgfd