Nedim Bajrami could make his Rangers debut when Philippe Clement’s side take on Dundee United this weekend.
And the £3.5 million signing from Sassuolo will be hoping to fare a little better than the last couple of ‘number tens’ who found themselves at the mercy of Clement.
Bajrami, who likes to play off the left but is also effective in a more central role due to his ‘great technique’, arrived on deadline day while Rangers agreed a deal to sell Todd Cantwell to Blackburn Rovers.
Cantwell found himself exiled from the Rangers first-team after informing Clement that he had struggled to settle in Scotland.
At least the former Norwich City playmaker found an escape route in the shape of the 1995 Premier League champions. The same cannot be said of Ianis Hagi.
Stuck in limbo after a proposed return to Romania with Rapid Bucharest failed to materialise, Hagi is unlikely to be seen again in Rangers blue. He certainly will not be part of the travelling party heading to Tannadice.
Bajrami should be on board, however, alongside Feyenoord loanee Neraysho Kasanwirjo.
And, in a weekend of many debuts on both sides of the border, the aforementioned Cantwell is also likely to have a part to play as he looks to kick-start his own career.
Rangers replace Todd Cantwell with Nedim Bajrami
Blackburn host Bristol City on Saturday.
Rovers boss John Eustace feels that Cantwell could come to represent an outstanding piece of business at just £500,000.
Lest we forget, it is only a few years since he was being linked with a £40 million move to Tottenham Hotspur.
“Todd is a top-class player at this level,” Eustace tells the Lancashire Telegraph, Cantwell champing at the bit and desperate to make up for lost time. “He’s been at Rangers for the last few seasons and last year probably wasn’t where he wants to be.
“We will give him the opportunity to showcase himself. He’s a top player at this level and I know he’s very determined to hit the heights he has in the past. He has lots of experience, he’s been promoted three times out of the league so we’re very excited that he’s here.”
Rangers signed Bajrami, in part, due to his ability to play anywhere across the frontline.
Eustace sees similar flexibility in Cantwell, who arrives under pressure to help offset the loss of last season’s Championship Golden Boot winner Sammie Szmodics to Ipswich Town.
“With the way we are playing, he can play in a number of positions across the front four,” the Blackburn boss adds. “I think any of those suits him.
“He’s a good lad who is coming into a group of really hard-working players. He’ll help develop them and we can help him too. He has been there and done it and now we have to give him the environment to succeed.”
Blackburn Rovers debut on the cards vs Bristol City
Eustace, who also confirmed his interest in Rangers winger Rabbi Matondo before the August 30th deadline, admits that Cantwell was Blackburn’s number one target for the attacking midfield role.
The player himself, meanwhile, is just delighted to be away from Ibrox.
“It was difficult (training apart from the rest of Rangers’ squad). It’s not a situation you ever want to be in as a player,” Cantwell, who never really endeared himself to the fans on the blue side of Glasgow, explains to the Lancashire Telegraph.
“I got on with all the players in the changing room and when you’re sat watching that happen, they go out to train, you wonder if you’ve made the decision or if you’re doing the right thing.
“It’s difficult as a player but, at 26, you get some maturity that there is a bigger picture. That’s what I kept telling myself in the hard days. I’m ready to step forward now, get back on the pitch and show where I’m at.”
