A winger is high up on Russell Martin’s Ibrox shopping list this summer
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi of Crystal Palace (Image: Getty Images)
In-demand Jesurun Rak-Sakyi appears to have had the door slammed shut on a move to Rangers by Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner.
The Scottish Premiership side are keen to sign the England youth international on an initial loan with a £10million option to buy.
Rangers have already seen their bid to land the wide man thrown into doubt after the 22-year-old limped off during Palace’s friendly clash with Crawley Town.
And while the full extent of the injury has get to emerge, Eagles’ boss Glasner has moved to close the door on any more departures ahead of the Community Shield showdown with Liverpool on August 10 – unless new faces are brought in.
He told Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung: “Even though all the players are still here, we haven’t made the most of the transfer window so far.
“I was promised that we would be more active and bring in the new players earlier this year.
“As of now, I have 17 outfield players. I hope we don’t lose any more.
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi
“If that happens and we get four new ones on deadline day like last year, another false start is possible.”
The latest set-back in the pursuit Rak-Sakyi comes after Rangers boss Russell Martin admitted he’s a player both he and the club’s decision makers are keen to land.
Martin, speaking to Sky Sports News last week, said: “He’s a player I like. We tried to take him to Southampton, it didn’t quite happen. I like him and the recruitment staff like him, but how far that’s gone… I’m not too sure.
“He’s a really good player. We look at all sorts of different profiles that we think can help the team, it doesn’t necessarily have to be one type of profile. Players are very different.
“We just need the ones with the right mentality who are desperate to come and play here. We’ll see where we end up in four weeks’ time.”
Since then, alternative deals for wingers have emerged with Tottenham’s teenage star Mikey Moore set to join the Glasgow giants on loan.
Go Ahead Eagles’ star Oliver Antman is also a target – but Celtic’s pursuit of teammate Jakob Breum could scupper any deal.
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