Rangers could complete their seventh signing of the summer ‘in the next few hours’ with Jose Cifuentes reportedly on his way to Ibrox from MLS outfit Los Angeles FC.
By the time Mick Beale’s side kick off their first pre-season fixture, their squad may be almost unrecognisable from the one which finished a distant second behind Old Firm rivals Celtic in the Scottish Premiership last season.
Out went Filip Helander, Allan McGregor, Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent.
And in their place comes Jack Butland, Dujon Sterling, Abdallah Sima, Kieran Dowell, Sam Lammers and Cyriel Dessers.
Dessers became Rangers’ sixth signing of the summer on Thursday, joining from Cremonese for an initial £4.3 million. Number seven, meanwhile, is reportedly only ‘hours’ away.
Rangers on verge of signing Jose Cifuentes from Los Angeles FC
“Confirmed,” writes Ecuadorian publication El Mercado Futbol. “In the next few hours, the transfer of Jose Cifuentes to Rangers from the United States will be completed.”
With his contract expiring at the end of 2023, it is believed Rangers may have to stump up as little as £1.5 million for Cifuentes. A bargain of a fee for a player who featured for Ecuador at the Qatar World Cup, and contributed 15 goals or assists for LAFC in the 2022 MLS campaign.
Labelled an ‘incredibly talented’ and ‘complete’ midfield player by Los Angeles coach Steve Cherundolo; Cifuentes’ continues a trend of Rangers signing highly-flexible talent capable of thriving in a number of different positions.
Sterling can play as a full-back or as a centre-half. Sima can play anywhere across the frontline, while Lammers is equally comfortable leading the attack as he is pulling strings from a ‘number ten’ role.
“Cifu is an incredibly talented player,” explains Cherundolo. “The sky is the limit for him. He is a complete player.”
