Derby County and Ipswich Town are reportedly chasing former Rangers player Matt Crooks [East Anglian Daily Times]
Crooks joined the Gers for a small fee from Accrington Stanley in 2016, moving at the same time as Josh Windass.
However, while Windass would go on to establish himself in the starting XI, the move didn’t go to plan for Crooks.
The 6ft 4″ colossus suffered an ankle injury soon after his arrival and didn’t impress Mark Warburton after returning to fitness, so he headed out on loan to Scunthorpe United for the second half of the season.
In the summer of 2017, he moved on for good, joining Northampton Town for an undisclosed fee.
A transfer to Rotherham United followed in 2019 and the 27-year-old has been playing arguably the best football of his career for the Millers.
Crooks has been a key asset for Paul Warne, playing in midfield, as a no.10 and as a forward, scoring seven goals and notching three assists from 42 appearances last season.
Warne labelled him a “driving force” after he picked up the Championship Player of the Month award for January [Themillers.co.uk].
The Yorkshire club were relegated to League One on a dramatic final day but it looks as though the former Ger could still be playing in the second tier next season.
That’s as according to the East Anglian Daily Times, Ipswich and Derby are fighting it out for his signature.
Crooks is under contract at the New York Stadium until the summer of 2022 and it’s suggested that it would take a six-figure fee to secure his services.
Things didn’t work out for the physical Leeds-born player at Ibrox but he’s recovered to forge a good career south of the border and it looks like he even has a chance of working under Wayne Rooney next season.
Crooks’ former Gers and Stanley teammate Windass could also be on the move following Sheffield Wednesday’s relegation from the Championship, with three second-tier clubs credited with interest back in April [Pete O’Rourke]
Meanwhile, Rangers have received a major boost after news emerged from an international camp.
