Rangers-linked FC Groningen striker Kevin van Veen has suggested the Dutch club want to get rid of him this winter.
Speaking after the Eerste Divisie side’s 2-1 win over FC Eindhoven on Friday evening, Kevin van Veen also claims that he wants to succeed in his aims at the club before leaving.
It comes with the former Motherwell striker’s time at FC Groningen not exactly going to plan since a £500k summer move from the Steelmen.
“Maybe Groningen wants to get rid of me,” Kevin van Veen told ESPN.
“That’s right, there is quite a lot of interest. But I never indicated that I wanted to leave. But Groningen may want to get rid of me, since I was a major purchase.
“But if it is up to me, I want to succeed here, and not leave this club and not leave this club without having done what I would have liked to do.
“But on the other hand, it concerns a lot of people who have to make that decision in winter I think.”
Kevin van Veen to Rangers?
The comments come after Kevin van Veen had claimed that Rangers were interested in taking him to Ibrox in the summer.
Rangers were extensively linked with a move for Kevin van Veen after a stunning season at Motherwell, where the ex-Scunthorpe striker scored 29 goals for the Fir Park side.
In an interview with the Scottish Sun, the 32-year-old also appeared to suggest that he was open to moving on from the Dutch side this winter.
Kevin van Veen would then describe the claims as “click bait” before reiterating his commitment to FC Groningen.
That hasn’t stopped former FC Groningen chief executive Hans Nijland describing a January exit as “almost inevitable”.
With the Gers potentially on the hunt for a new striker, the situation will surely have put Rangers on red alert.
Groningen boss wants Dutch striker to stay
Despite all the sounds to the contrary, it appears there is one man who wants Kevin van Veen to stay at FC Groningen beyond the winter window.
The club’s manager Dick Lukkien has been speaking to the press about the situation and claims he wants to work with Van Veen to improve his recent performances.
“I just want him to stay and do what he can,” said Lukkien.
“Of course there are all kinds of things going on around him, we now have three questions about Kevin.
“Of course it’s too much about Kevin, we have to work together to ensure that he gets better performance.”
Kevin van Veen has scored five goals in 14 league games this season but hasn’t started a match for FC Groningen since 20th October.
Rangers currently have Cyriel Dessers, Danilo and Kemar Roofe as the striker options in the first-team squad.
