Many Rangers fans wonder why Giovanni van Bronckhorst didn’t look to his home country of the Netherlands during his stint at Ibrox.
Despite the Dutch legend’s links to the nation, Rangers didn’t sign a single player from Holland whilst Gio was the manager of the club.
But whilst it’s a damning indictment of the club’s stuttering transfer business under Van Bronckhorst, since Gio’s departure it’s become clear this wasn’t for the want of trying.
Van Bronckhorst did try to sign a host of young Dutch talent at Rangers but with one of that number now set to move for €81m (£67.8m) it shows just how big a task the club had convincing them.
When Rangers tried to sign Dutch wonderkid
There are a number of Dutch players that Rangers tried to sign during the reign of Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
Former Rangers star Bert Konterman revealed that he warned now AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders off a move to Ibrox whilst he was at AZ Alkmaar.
Van Bronckhorst himself then claimed that Rangers had tried to sign ex-Chelsea left-back Ian Maatsen before a loan move to Borussia Dortmund.
Rangers fans will also remember the prominent links to Vitesse Arnhem defender Danilho Doekhi, who wound up moving to Union Berlin in Germany.
But there is one name which made more headlines that all the rest, probably combined, in former Barcelona talent Xavi Simons.
With the Dutch midfielder’s contract expiring at PSG, Giovanni van Bronckhorst tried to strike a creative deal for Simons who wound up moving to PSV Eindhoven.
Xavi Simons to complete £67.8m transfer
Since then Xavi Simons, who is only 21, has moved back to PSG Eindhoven, returned to PSG and gone out on loan to RB Leipzig.
Branded an ‘incredible’ player by former PSV manager Ruud van Nistelrooy, Simons has also begun cementing his place in the Dutch national team.
But if Rangers fans want to get an idea of just how ambitious these links were, SImons is now being linked with a permanent €81m (£67.8m) move to Germany.
According to Bild, RB Leipzig have agreed a club-record package to sign Xavi Simons permanently from the Ligue 1 giants this January.
The deal is worth an initial €50m (£41.8m) with another €31m (£26m) in achievable add-ons, making this a statement signing from the Bundesliga club.
Xavi Simons is one of this generation’s brightest talents but every time the midfielder’s name flashes up it’s tinged with a small sense of regret for Rangers fans.
If only Rangers had convinced the youngster to move to Ibrox instead of PSV Eindhoven, then we’d have had the chance to see him grace the turf at the famous old stadium.
