Rangers reportedly ignored the chance to bring in Steven Alzate from Premier League outfit Brighton and Hove Albion in January and that is a decision which has aged pretty well since the January transfer window closed.
If reports are to be believed, Rangers were offered the chance to bring the stylish Colombia international to Ibrox in the winter.
Steven Alzate, Brighton’s £7 million-rated Standard Liege loanee, is due to become a free-agent at the end of the current campaign. And Roberto de Zerbi’s side allegedly ‘tried to convince’ Rangers to buy him some six months before he was due to leave The Amex for nothing.
Rangers, however, resisted the opportunity to do just that.
Flash forward to mid-March. And, while Alzate’s performances over in Belgium are currently leaving a lot to be desired, the midfielder Rangers signed instead – Mohamed Diomande – appears to be shaping up to be one of the finest pound-for-pound additions in recent years at a reported £4.5 million.
Rangers chose Diomande over Steven Alzate
“For sure (he can improve further). Not only the next weeks, the next months and years,” Clement says of Diomande, who grabbed his first Rangers assist during a typically all-action display away to Benfica in the UEFA Europa League.
“He’s a high potential player and I don’t think Rangers will be his last step. Of course, you need some luck with injuries in your career. But, if he steers clear of that, he’s going to make bigger steps.
“He has talent but also the right mentality to work for the team, be very concentrated and very focused.”
It’s fair to say Alzate’s recent displays are not attracting quite so much praise. Standard Liege have won just two of eight league matches since the Brighton loanee made his return from injury. And Alzate’s ineffective performance during Sunday’s 1-0 defeat at Genk caught the eye for all the wrong reasons.
Rangers appeared to have got the right man
“Good players have to transcend the team when things are not going well,” former Belgium forward Nordin Jbari tells RTBF. “But Steven Alzate doesn’t talk. He is not a leader.”
“Steven Alzate, what a talent,” adds Cecile De Grenier, the former Standard women’s star. “But he didn’t care (against Genk). He didn’t want to be there.”
You certainly cannot aim the same accusations at Diomande. The January signing threatening to reach ‘fans favourite’ status in double-quick time.
For a club who have faced plenty of criticism with regards to their recruitment in recent times, the Philippe Clement – Nils Koppen era has certainly started a lot better than the previous one ended.
