Nils Koppen will have begun planning for the summer transfer window long before Philippe Clement was sacked with Rangers needing players throughout the team.
Lists will be compiled and assessed to meet the needs of the club rather than what the new Rangers manager wants with one area of the squad in particular still needing to be addressed.
Rangers Europa League squad is still four players light due to a shortage of Scottish players with one former target showing why his name should be on a post-it note somewhere on the technical director’s desk.
Should Rangers re-kindle their interest in Kevin Nisbet?
Missing out on Kevin Nisbet is said to be the reason why Steven Gerrard left Rangers, has rediscovered the form that saw him capped for Scotland and Millwall pay a seven-figure fee to sign him from Hibernian.
Fully fit after knee surgery in 2021/22, a loan move to Aberdeen this season has seen a goal contribution every 111 minutes in the league.
Out of contract next summer, the Championship could be open to a sale, if the price is right.
At 27, Nisbet is a good age, won’t break the bank and knows the SPFL well, as low risk a signing that Rangers can find that ticks a lot of boxes.
As one of three or four strikers, Nisbet would provide a solid rotational option and someone who wouldn’t need any time to settle.
How does Nisbet fit into Rangers signing policy?
Speaking after his appointment as CEO, Stewart made it clear that shopping local was part of the player trading plan:
“The second category is talented Scottish players and we want a talented group of young Scottish players not just young players that are going to form the core of the squad. And again two good examples we’ve got John Souttar and Connor Barron who are good examples of building that Scottish core. And it’s really important that we have that for the identity of the football club.
“Also supporters, I believe, will want a team they can relate to and that reflects their identity and values as well and that does mean that we do need homegrown players. Also your UEFA has regulations or a number of homegrown players so we would need to do this anyway but it’s more than just about ticking our compliance boxes, it’s about creating a real identity and a core within the dressing room.”
What is certain, is that Nisbet wouldn’t allow himself to get bullied by SPFL defenders as easily as some of Rangers’ recent strikers.
