Rangers have been dealt an apparent transfer blow after reported target Mirko Ivanic signed a new deal at Red Star Belgrade.
In August, reports in Serbia claimed that Ivanic was the subject of a €3.5m (£3m) bid from Ibrox following Red Star’s failure to make the Champions League group stages [Mozzart Sport].
The links came after the attacking midfielder’s stunning 2020/21 campaign, during which he scored 20 goals and notched 16 assists from 48 appearances in all competitions.
Reports from the likes of Sportska Centrala and Meridan then warned that Red Star were determined ‘to keep Ivanic at all costs’ and had an offer lined up.
Hope lingered as around two months passed by with no contract update, but the 28-year-old has now committed his future to the Serbian giants.
Red Star are currently second in the SuperLiga and top of Europa League Group F, with Ivanic bagging eight goals and one assist.
Ivanic was described as ‘irreplaceable’ [translated] in an article on the club’s website which announced the new contract that will run through to 2025.
“I am very happy because I extended my contract with Crvena Zvezda,” said the Montenegro international [crvenazvezdafk.com]. “I must point out that we agreed on that much earlier, but now we have captured the right moment between the matches to make it official.”
“I will try to be even better in the coming period, I have set high goals and I want to surpass myself. I hope that we will continue to win and record great results.”
This could be a big blow for Rangers given their reported interest in Ivanic over the summer.
His numbers are outstanding and at 28, he’s an experienced player with several good years left in him.
Of course, the new contract doesn’t mean he’ll definitely stay in Belgrade until 2025, but it does ensure any interested clubs will have to pay top dollar if they want to prize him away in upcoming transfer windows.
In other news, an exciting Rangers starlet scored a match-winning brace in a youth international match on Wednesday.
