Stoke City are confident that have signed a player with ‘great attacking qualities’ as reported Rangers target Million Manhoef seals a £3.5 million move from Vitesse Arnhem to the English Championship.
Moving from Arnhem to Staffordshire on deadline day, the cynics will say that the Dutch under-21 international has just swapped one relegation battle for another. The Potters are still seven points above the drop zone, yes, but seemingly only heading in one direction.
Stoke will be hoping, then, that Manhoef proves to be ‘one in a Million’ indeed, this most versatile of footballers moving to England after speculation suggesting he could have arrived on the other side of Hadrian’s Wall.
Rangers, according to the Scottish Sun, were leading the race at the start of the month, albeit the links went cold once Philippe Clement’s side set their sights on Mohamed Diomande and Oscar Cortes.
Rangers target moves to Stoke City
“Our recruitment team identified Million as a target during the summer transfer window and, having continued to track his performances since then, we are delighted to now bring him to Stoke,” technical director Ricky Martin smiles, fittingly ‘loca’ about his long-awaited acquisition.
“As a left-footed player that cuts in from the right, Milly has great attacking qualities and will provide us with a fresh and dangerous dimension going forward. His enthusiasm and desire to have an impact in English football will also be beneficial to the dynamic in our group.”
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Manhoef was one of the Eredivisie’s stand-out performers in 2022/23. He finished his breakout season with nine goals and six assists, even netting a maiden hat-trick against Groningen in May.
Rangers will be hoping that Oscar Cortes, arriving on loan from Lens, can stump up similarly impressive numbers during his time in Glasgow, although it may take some time for the Colombian to get up to full speed again after featuring so rarely across the Channel.
Perhaps sparked by the arrival of ex-PSV chief Nils Koppen, Rangers were linked with a number of Dutch-based players in January. Manhoef was just one, Gijs Smal and Frederik Oppegard also mentioned.
