In a blow for Rangers, reported transfer target Rafael Santos Borré has officially joined Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt.
The 25-year-old has signed on a free transfer after his previous contract at Argentine giants River Plate expired.
The Light Blues were initially credited with interest in Santos Borré by Football Insider and then El Deportivo claimed that while he was being offered the chance to stay in Buenos Aires, the Gers were tabling a financially superior offer.
However, late last month, Sky Sport presenter Max Bielefeld asserted that Frankfurt had swooped in for the forward, and now the transfer has been confirmed.
The German top-flight club announced his signing on a four-year contract on Monday afternoon.
In their announcement, he was referred to as a ‘powerful’, ‘old-fashioned striker who comes alive in the box’, who ‘reads the game well and has explosive acceleration’.
“Rafael Santos Borré is a very interesting player who has already gained experience in European club football,” added Eintracht board member for sport, Markus Krösche.
“His goalscoring instinct and eye for goal will help us. We’re happy to have signed an international-calibre player. Both in sporting and financial terms it’s a very good transfer for us.”
Rangers fans may well be disappointed to have missed out on the Colombia international who produced an impressive 56 goals and 18 assists from 149 appearances for River Plate.
To sign a 25-year-old striker with those numbers for nothing is an outstanding piece of business.
The Gers have already brought in two exciting players on frees this summer in Fashion Sakala and John Lundstram, though, and perhaps it was simply the bigger profile of the Bundesliga in comparison to the Premiership that swayed Santos Borré.
Right now, Steven Gerrard still has plenty of options at the top end of the pitch, but if Alfredo Morelos was to be sold, a new signing would be expected.
Here’s a selection of reactions from supporters to the confirmed capture of Lundstram.
