The former manager of Egyptian side Zamalek has claimed that Rangers boss Steven Gerrard called him personally with a view to moving for Egyptian striker Mostafa Mohamed.
Rangers were linked with a move for the 22-year-old striker at the beginning of December [Scottish Sun] as the club looked to bolster their strike force for the title run-in.
But Serbian boss Milutin Sredojevic – who lasted just four months in Egypt – claims Gerrard was “very keen indeed” to sign the talented forward.
“Steven Gerrard called me personally to ask about Mostafa Mohamed. He wanted to know what he was like as a player and at training,” said Sredojevic [Daily Record], who is now in charge of Zambia.
“But Zamalek made it very difficult for the transfer to go through because they don’t want to looked at as a selling club.
“So the transfer never happened, but Steven Gerrard was very keen indeed for the move to go through.
“Mostafa is a player with a bright future. He is an incredible talent who will of course go to Europe one day soon.”
It’s a glowing reference from Sredojevic and at the very least shows that Rangers were being creative in identifying and securing their targets.
Mohamed is a powerful striker who first gained attention for his performances with Egypt in the 2019 U23 AFCON competition.
The striker has hit eight goals in 24 games this season for Zamalek [Transfermarkt] and it will be interesting to see if Rangers reignite any interest in the future.
The Ibrox club was said to have placed a £500k bid for Mohamed with Zamalek reportedly slapping a £5m price tag on the player’s head [Scottish Sun] to ward off interest.
The Ibrox club has also been linked with a €6-9m move for an Austrian striker [Robin Bairner] currently plying his trade in the French second tier.
Talismanic Rangers forward Alfredo Morelos has been linked with eight clubs already [Goal] ahead of the summer transfer window.