Speculation is starting to increase over Rangers and Michael Beale potentially targeting a new centre-half with Ben Davies’s future at the club in doubt.
Several names have been mentioned after rumours of bids for Jonathan Panzo and Auston Trusty went quiet.
Rangers have seen Harry Souttar, Jake Cooper and Zak Vyners all linked in recent days which suggests that there is no smoke without fire and that Michael Beale does have his eye on a new defender.
Rangers-linked defenders assessed as Michael Beale looks to add
Of the three players mentioned, one of them sticks out as being the more suitable for Rangers and how Michael Beale wants his defenders to play.
Against Kilmarnock and Livingston, the centre-halves had to defend 1v1 and cover almost a whole half of the pitch on their own.
John Souttar is the template for what Michael Beale should be looking for in that he can win his physical battles, is dominant in the air and composed in possession.
His brother Harry is as strong at the basics but isn’t as good with the ball.
Jake Cooper has a similar skillset but has been playing in the Championship and his statistics aren’t as impressive as the younger of the two Souttars.
In fairness, he wasn’t bought for £15m this year either.
Zak Vyners would be an interesting option though.
He isn’t as strong in the air as Souttar or Cooper but he wins his duels, makes progressive passes and is better at carrying the ball out of defence.
Rangers have had their name thrown into the mix for the 26-year old Bristol City defender with Michael Beale said to be keen.
It’s just a shame that Leon Balogun isn’t 10 years younger.
The 35-year old strolled his second Rangers debut against Livingston’s Joel Nouble, who is a handful for any defender.
The popular Nigerian has the pace and physicality needed to cover a big area and is also good in the air.
An added bonus is that he loves going on an adventure with the ball at his feet too.
It’s a difficult position for Rangers to recruit for given that negotiations will inevitable involve trying to explain that only Connor Goldson is guaranteed to start but that is the task faced by Michael Beale.
If Ben Davies does leave though, expect to see one of the names mentioned previously to be seen with a scarf above their head pretty quickly.
