Orange County Soccer Club goalkeeper Aaron Cervantes has touched down in Glasgow as Rangers look to take advantage of a transatlantic relationship between the two clubs to sign a young American talent.
The 19-year-old stopper has arrived in the UK and his career with Rangers now begins as he looks to follow in the footsteps of several United States players before him by turning out for the Gers.
Taking to Twitter, a special video was released through the official Orange County Twitter account in which Cervantes thanked everyone for their support so far.
The talented goalkeeper represented the USA at the U-17s World Cup in 2019 and has trained with the nation’s senior team already in his short career.
Cervantes has also made 18 appearances for the Orange County first team with that first-team exposure being a big draw for those at Ibrox.
Cervantes’ move to Ibrox comes after the Gers announced the signing of the player in October of last year.
Upon the announcement of the deal, Gers Academy boss Craig Mullholland praised the stopper and revealed there are plans to send him out on loan to a club in Europe as part of a “creative agreement”.
“We are delighted to welcome Aaron to Rangers and have enjoyed watching his excellent progress with our partners at Orange County,” said Mulholland, speaking to Rangers TV.
“He has been exposed at an early age to first-team football and will now continue this with a loan in Europe as part of this creative agreement.
“Ross Wilson and I are in constant dialogue with the team at Orange County and this is another major step in the exciting partnership which will see a high calibre of US talent being attracted to Orange County.
“If these young talents show outstanding potential, then they can participate in a jointly developed plan to reach one of Europe’s biggest clubs making Orange County one of the most attractive options for the best young players in the US.”
Should Cervantes breakthrough into the Rangers first-team he would become the 9th player from the USA to pull on the Famous Blue.
Claudio Reyna, DaMarcus Beasley, Maurice Edu, Alejandro Bedoya, Carlos Bocanegra, Gedion Zelalem, Emerson Hyndman, and Matt Polster are the other eight Americans to play for the club.
In other news, one current Rangers international is being heavily linked with the Ibrox exit door with one report even claiming he’s open to a move.
