Rangers captain James Tavernier could well be set to leave Ibrox this summer after nine years at the club.
News that Turkish Super Lig side Trabzonspor have put forward a ‘formal proposal’ for Tavernier has sent Rangers fans scrambling.
The Rangers support know that the club will need to sell in order to raise funds this transfer window but many will have been blindsided by what looks like an imminent exit for the club’s captain.
A leading Turkish journalist has even claimed that Tavernier has already accepted Trabzonspor’s proposal with Rangers and the Turks not so far apart in terms of valuation.
Having scored 24 goals last season, James Tavernier’s are big boots to fill but with 33 on the horizon and a summer of change sweeping through Ibrox, the time certainly appears nigh.
Should the move be concluded, reports earlier in the summer claimed Rangers and Philippe Clement already have their replacement lined up.
Rangers line up new captain
After nine years marauding up and down the right-hand side at Ibrox, it’s going to be strange seeing a Rangers team without James Tavernier.
But the truth is the Ibrox skipper won’t be the only one leaving the club this summer.
Tav is already set to join John Lundstram and Borna Barisic in Turkey, whilst there remains big questions over the future of vice-captain Connor Goldson.
For that reason the ex-Brighton centre-back is not an obvious choice to replace Tavernier as skipper.
Indeed there is only one stand-out option in the entire Rangers squad, and that’s goalkeeper Jack Butland.
Confusing reports earlier in the summer initially suggested Tavernier would be stripped of the captaincy this season with the armband handed to Butland.
Originating in the Daily Record, these were eventually edited to suggest that Super Jack would only replace Captain Tav if the skipper left the club.
Whilst nothing is official just yet, that’s an eventuality that looks increasingly likely and we fully expect Jack Butland to be handed the armband in such an event.
Butland only ‘irreplaceable’ player at Rangers
Interestingly, Rangers manager Philippe Clement has only this week suggested that Jack Butland is the only ‘irreplaceable’ player in the Ibrox club’s squad.
Speaking as the Rangers manager faced questions about the future of his team this summer, it’s clear that big Phil rates the role of Butland in his team very highly.
“If there is somebody coming with the right amount of money we will see, we will discus,” said Clement
“But you always need to see and then you need to replace somebody and you need enough money to replace them to make it better, otherwise it is also of no use. It is finding a balance in that way.
“I think there is only one player that is irreplaceable at the moment that I don’t think a team will pay the money that he is worth, for sure, and that is Jack Butland. Everybody knows what I think about that.”
Rangers signed Jack Butland last summer when the goalkeeper’s contract with Crystal Palace expired following a stint on loan at Manchester United.
The goalie went on to win the Rangers Player of the Year after a string of impressive performances last season.
