Scottish Premiership giants Rangers may have to pay a minimum of £2 million if they want to beat Serie A, Portuguese and Brazilian competition to Sante Fe defender Kevin Mantilla, Pipe Sierra reports on Twitter.
There is good reason to take Sierra’s word as gospel when it comes to Colombian talent. It was he who broke the news of Luis Diaz’s £37 million switch from FC Porto to Liverpool 14 months ago.
Mantilla, a 6ft 3ins centre-half with admirers on all corners of the continent, could potentially join Diaz at Anfield if Tuttomercatoweb is to be believed. Sante Fe president Eduardo Mendez, meanwhile, admits that clubs as far flung as Greece, Portugal and Uruguay have made their interest in the 19-year-old known too.
Rangers and Liverpool among Kevin Mantilla’s admirers
Santa Fe are in no rush to cash in. And, even if they were, it would take a bid in excess of £2 million to twist their arm.
“Santa Fe have rejected offers for Kevin Mantilla from AEK Athens and Vasco da Gama. Torino and a Portuguese club have announced that they will make offers in the coming days,” Sierra writes.
“Los Cardenales are expecting 2.5 million dollars.”
A £1.8 million offer, Sierra adds, has already been rejected.
Time will tell if Rangers are willing to invest such a fee on a teenage centre-half with only a handful of first-team league appearances under his belt. Mick Beale wants further competition for his Gers backline but a more pressing concern appears to be finding a replacement for Filip Helander in the left-sided centre-half role.
Mantilla, in contrast, is more comfortable on his right.
Mendez, meanwhile, insists that Mantilla has not had his head turned by all that speculation.
“(Mantilla is) a magnificent person who values and respects his club,” Mendez says. “He has told us that the club benefits him, he has no desire to leave. He wants to be at Santa Fe before traveling the world.
“We have to think first of the team,” Mendez adds. “Clubs have called us, looked at us, and we have the doors open.”
