There is some confusion around transfer links coming out of Malaysia as Rangers are tipped to move for local winger Arif Aiman Hanapi.
Reports have emerged in the Southeast Asian country that Rangers are monitoring the situation with the 22-year-old winger, who currently plies his trade for Johor Darul Ta’zim.
The links come with Arif Aiman Hanapi being a top performer for the Malaysian Super League leaders both domestically and in the Asian Champions League Elite.
But all is not as it appears as Rangers are mentioned in one of Malaysia’s leading English-language newspapers as being interested in the winger.
Rangers linked to Arif Aiman Hanapi
Rangers links to Arif Aiman Hanapi have appeared in Malaysian outlet the New Strait Times.
Specially, Rangers are mentioned on page 45 of the paper’s Sunday Times edition from 10th November 2024.
On the surface, Arif Aiman Hanapi appears to tick a lot of boxes for Rangers with the winger netting four goals in the ACLE this season.
The Johor Darul Ta’zim forward also has four goals and seven assists in eleven league games this season, whilst a further three strikes in the Malaysian cup takes the winger’s tally to nine goals for the campaign.
Rangers have been busy exploring emerging markets under new director of recruitment Nils Koppen, with players arriving from across the globe as Rangers look to revamp their player trading model.
But whilst players have arrived from Brazil, Morocco and Scandinavia under the Belgian, there are some eyebrows being raised about the New Strait Times report.
Rangers links to Malaysian winger raise eyebrows
That’s because the NST report and those Rangers links to Arif Aiman Hanapi appear to be based on a suggestion from a leading Rangers-centric X account.
The report claims Hanapi has ‘reportedly attracted attention from Rangers FC’ although ‘it remains to be seen if the interest will translate into a concrete offer’.
The report, which was written by journalist Farah Azharie, then cites the Rangers Journal in the article, referring to an X post which suggests Arif Aiman Hanapi as a potential Gers signing.
Tagging Nils Koppen, the Rangers Journal described Hanapi as a ‘massive threat in the final third’ and suggested the winger is ‘ready for the next challenge in his career’.
The outlet even made mention of the fact that Arif Aiman Hanapi is available on a pre-contract come January.
But it is clear the post is simply a transfer recommendation, something the outlet does regularly as part of its coverage.
However, this is not how the Rangers Journal has been quoted in the New Strait Times.
In the Times report, the outlet is quoted as saying: ‘Arif is clearly ready for the next step in his career, and we (Rangers) are closely monitoring his progress.’
It’s led to some confusion over the transfer links with Rangers set to be busy in their recruitment come the January transfer window.
The sounds coming out of the Ibrox side are certainly promising with Nils Koppen and co already ‘identifying’ crucial areas of concern.
