With Monday’s deadline looming, the narrative hanging around clubs such as Philippe Clement’s injury-hit Rangers is that time is rapidly running out regarding their chances of bringing in reinforcements.
But, from another perspective, time is also running out for those seldom-seen, out-of-favour players who, if a solution cannot be found before the 11pm cut-off point, may be forced to spend the remainder of 2024/25 gathering dust and cobwebs in reserve.
Take Bamo Meite, for instance.
The Marseille defender was linked with Rangers earlier in January. But, flash forward to the final day of the month, and Bamo Meite now arguably needs Rangers more than Rangers need Bamo Meite.
Because, given that Rangers one and so-far only winter addition is that of LOSC Lille loanee Rafael Fernandes, it seems highly unlikely that the Ibrox outfit would prioritise another central defender if they opt to enter the market again over the next 72 hours or so.
Rangers have left Bamo Meite stuck in Ligue 1 limbo at Marseille
Bamo Meite, like Fernandes, is a right-footed centre-half renowned for his athleticism, his physical profile, and his technical qualities when bringing the ball out from the back.
It may be no coincidence, meanwhile, that Rangers turned to Sporting Lisbon academy graduate Fernandes one week after it emerged that Marseille were determined to sell, rather than loan, a player who set the 1993 European champions back an eye-watering £9 million.
Marseille would ideally like to recoup much if not all of their 10.5 million euro investment. With funds tight at Ibrox – Rangers could not even afford Osijek’s Marko Soldo at £2.5 million – the chance to bring in Fernandes on a temporary basis without an obligation to make the deal permanent made far more sense from a financial perspective.
Montpellier are reportedly still in pursuit of Meite.
But, after president Laurent Nicollin spoke out about Marseille’s demands, the most likely scenario at this stage is that the 23-year-old Ivorian finds himself stuck on the sidelines with no means of escape until the window opens again in the summer.
“If we have to sign someone, we would rather sign a defender who can play right-back,” Nicollin told Midi Libre a fortnight ago. “Bamo Meite, who we contacted, has this profile.
“But Marseille wants to sell him. You never know what can happen at the end of the transfer window.”
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You never know for certain, yes, but you can always make an educated guess.
And with reports claiming that Montpellier are currently unwilling to bow down to Marseille’s financial demands, the smart money is on Meite enduring a miserable end to an already unhappy campaign. The former FC Lorient man has played only three Ligue 1 matches – totalling just 24 minutes on the pitch – since Roberto de Zerbi arrived at the Stade Velodrome from Brighton and Hove Albion.
As for Rafael Fernandes – sources behind the scenes feel Rangers have signed an ‘unreal’ talent in the Portuguese youngster – a Premiership debut could be on the cards against Ross County on Sunday.
Rangers have John Souttar back available again but Philippe Clement may be wary of throwing him back into teh starting XI for fear of another damaging, season-derailing setback.
“Rafael was always one of the stand-out talents throughout Sporting’s youth age groups,” Pedro Coehlo, who coached a young Fernandes in Portugal, tells Rangers Review.
“He’s always had very good technique on the ball alongside physical skills. He’s very tall, very fast and strong in the duels. For the position he plays at centre-back, he has a very good heading game which is very important.
“Technically, he is at a good level able to commit to his decisions, although his passing over medium distances is better than over long distances.
“Physically, he is very strong and in football, the physical skills are very important.”
