Jim Goodwin has confirmed that Rangers loanee Daniel Finlayson will join Premiership club St Mirren on a permanent deal this summer.
Finlayson captained Rangers U18s to Scottish Youth Cup glory in 2019.
He then starred for the Colts and U20s in the Challenge Cup and the UEFA Youth League respectively last season, before jetting off to the United States to join partner club Orange County for a loan stint.
Following his return to the UK in October 2020, he joined St Mirren on loan, with the Buddies negotiating an option to buy [Stmirren.com].
The Northern Ireland youth international has only made one first-team appearance since then, but Goodwin sees him as an exciting prospect and has confirmed that a permanent transfer will happen.
“He is on loan from Rangers at the moment but we have a contract in place for him and an agreement in place with Rangers,” he told reporters. “He will join us on a full-time basis in the summer. I want to give young lads an opportunity. He’s one for the future.”
“We had that conversation with Daniel and his representatives. We explained the project to Daniel and what we were going to be looking for from Daniel. It was never about Daniel coming in and getting 15-20 first-team games. We wanted him to come in and train regularly with senior pros.
“He had a really good loan period with Orange County in the USA, where Rangers have a partnership. It was a very successful loan period and I watched a lot of him on YouTube. He caught the eye with his energy and professionalism. We are looking at him as a Marcus Fraser or Jason Naismith-type, one that is going to go on and have a very successful career.”
Finlayson played mainly at centre-back at youth team level but was more regularly deployed at right-back during his time in the States.
When he does eventually complete his permanent exit, he will become the second talented young player to leave the club following a stint with OCSC, after Cammy Palmer.
Former Rangers Reserves skipper Palmer left Ibrox in January is currently thriving at Northern Irish club Linfield, who are closing in on the NIFL Premiership title.
In other news, the TV details for the Gers’ Scottish Cup quarter-final against St Johnstone have been confirmed.
