Italian outlet Areanapoli.it have claimed that Rangers linked full-back Konstantinos Tsimikas wants to leave Olympiacos for Serie A.
Back in December, Turkish outlet Fotomac named Rangers as one of several clubs interested in landing the Greek international. At that stage, sides from Turkey, France and Germany were all linked with a move in the region of £3 million.
However, it seems that a Serie A club is likely to win the race, with Italy allegedly the players preferred destination.
According to Areanapoli.it, Napoli are currently in negotiations with Olympiacos over a transfer but are set to face competition from Atalanta.
The same article suggests that increased competition for the player’s signature could inflate his transfer fee to somewhere in the region of £20 million, but reports elsewhere expect a much lower fee of £6-8 million [Calciomercato].
Verdict
Given that Rangers are reportedly set to rebuff all offers for Borna Barisic during this window [Daily Record], it’s no great loss that Tsimikas is set to head elsewhere.
There’s no doubt he’s a talented operator. Already capped at senior international level aged just 23, the full-back has also come up against the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Harry Kane in the Champions League this season.
However, even his more conservative valuations are well beyond Rangers right now, especially as Steven Gerrard already has a top-class operator in that position.
It will be interesting to see what he goes for in the end, though, as his transfer fee could be used to loosely inform the Gers’ negotiations with Roma, should the Italian giants come back in for Barisic in the summer.
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