Bologna only paid Aberdeen £1.7m midfielder Lewis Ferguson in transfer fee claims that will rankle with frustrated Rangers supporters.
The Serie A midfielder, 24, has been routinely linked with a move to Ibrox in his career with Rangers one of the most prominent names in the hunt before he moved to Bologna in 2022.
Since then, Lewis Ferguson has emerged as a key player for the Italian side and news of such a reduced transfer fee points to one of the most recent bargains in the country’s history.
Now linked to the likes of Napoli, only Bologna goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski has played more Serie A minutes for Bologna this season.
The midfielder is on solid form too, with three goals for the Serie A side already this season having scored seven from midfield last campaign.
Bologna paid bargain transfer fee to sign Lewis Ferguson
In a glowing report, the Guardian also reveal that Bologna paid Aberdeen only €2m (£1.7m) to sign the midfielder in claims which will hurt Rangers supporters.
It’s almost half the £3m that was reported in Scotland at the time.
Much has been made about Rangers’ lop-sided squad in terms of homegrown players, with several high profile players missing out from the club’s Europa League squad this season.
Lewis Ferguson is one of the most high profile homegrown talents who has been available in recent seasons and his links to Rangers appeared to make the move a logical one.
The son of former Ibrox star Derek and the nephew of former treble-winning captain Barry, there is a feeling that Lewis Ferguson is destined to pull on the blue of Rangers at some stage in his career.
But given the bargain fee Bologna paid to sign the midfielder – and the links to some of the top teams in Italy in the aftermath – it appears it could be in a swansong rather than at the peak of his powers.
With homegrown quotas to meet and major inflation around the bigger leagues in Europe, Rangers quite simply cannot afford to turn their nose up at these sorts of deals in the future.
A failure to land Lewis Ferguson continues to haunt Rangers and amid news of a £1.7m transfer fee the powers that be at the club will come under the microscope.
