There have been a few players brave enough to cross the Rangers v Celtic divide over the decades.
No fewer than 20 players have played for Rangers and Celtic but these days, swapping Ibrox for Parkhead or vice verse is a major no-no.
Celtic youth Francis Turley turned down Rangers in favour of a move to Parkhead and summed up the Old Firm sentiment by suggesting there was ‘no chance’ he’d play at Ibrox.
Ahead of the summer transfer window, one crucial Celtic star who is set to leave Parkhead has been tipped for a sensational switch to Rangers.
But if the Ibrox side are serious about making a move, then they can expect to cough up with one of the Gers’ fellow UEFA coefficient top performers well in the hunt.
Greg Taylor has ‘lucrative’ offer from Champions League side
It’s not like former Rangers striker Kris Boyd to court controversy and that’s exactly what the former Ibrox number nine did with regards Greg Taylor.
Boyd tipped Rangers to consider Taylor as a potential option with the left-back’s contract ticking down at Celtic Park ahead of the summer.
With Brendan Rodgers now confirming that Taylor is set to leave Rangers’ Old Firm rivals, it’s only got people talking more.
Craig Moore reckons Rangers could do worse than Taylor with heavy scrutiny on left-back pair Jefte and Ridvan Yilmaz at Ibrox.
But if Rangers are serious about launching a move for the full-back, then it looks like they will face stiff competition in Glasgow.
That’s because the Daily Record have claimed that there is a ‘lucrative‘ offer on the table for Greg Taylor from Champions League outfit Dinamo.
Like Rangers, the Croatian club are one of the best performing clubs on the continent in recent seasons as evidenced by UEFA’s coefficient points system.
Whilst Rangers sit in 8th (17.825), Dinamo are currently 3rd (19.000) in an impressive indication of the club’s strength on the continent.
Where do Rangers links to Celtic’s Greg Taylor come from?
With clubs in the US also monitoring Greg Taylor’s situation at Celtic it’s clear Rangers would face competition if a move for the left-back had any basis in reality.
But with Jefte interesting Chelsea and Yilmaz slaughtered for his showing v Dundee, Rangers do have some uncertainty in the position.
| Jefte | Ridvan Yilmaz | Greg Taylor | |
| Appearances (starts) | 27 (25) | 17 (11) | 22 (19) |
| Goals (xG) | 0 (0.69) | 0 (0.46) | 0 (0.83) |
| Assists (xA) | 2 (2.88) | 2 (1.62) | 6 (3.93) |
| Successful passes (pass accuracy) | 1145 (83.8%) | 469 (82.3%) | 1409 (88.1%) |
| Successful crosses (cross accuracy) | 25 (29.1%) | 11 (19.6%) | 11 (18%) |
| Chances created | 29 | 20 | 31 |
| Successful dribbles (%) | 31 (49.2%) | 13 (44.8%) | 8 (50%) |
| Touches (in opposition box) | 2128 (37) | 924 (18) | 2032 (48) |
| Duels won (%) | 156 (52.2%) | 53 (54.1%) | 95 (54%) |
| Recoveries | 113 | 65 | 83 |
| Possession won in final third | 9 | 4 | 9 |
| Fouls won (fouls committed) | 17 (26) | 19 (3) | 20 (14) |
The links to Taylor stem specifically to Kris Boyd’s comments and it’s worth noting that there has not been any official suggestion Rangers are interested in the defender.
”If you’re Rangers would you offer Greg Taylor a contract?” Boyd asked the Scottish Sun
”Just when you think of Yilmaz and Jefte. I think Greg Taylor has shown for a consistent period of time now how consistent he has been.
”If he’s not going to be at Celtic, he said he want to play football, he wants to play regular. Could we see him switch sides in Glasgow?”
Taylor grew up a bluenose and there’s a suggestion the defender has never quite got the credit he deserves at Parkhead due to his Rangers allegiances.
