Rangers’ interest in Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland is “very real” but it may be hard for a deal to be struck, according to Barry Ferguson.
The Light Blues have long been linked with the Scotland international, but reports this summer suggest Philippe Clement may now be ready to pay the money to bring him to Glasgow [Daily Record, 25 July].
Although Daily Record pundit Ferguson has been told the Gers want to sign Shankland this summer, he thinks the Light Blues and Hearts may not be in the same “ballpark” when it comes to his valuation.
Writing for the Daily Record (27 July) he said: “But, now that the funds are starting to come in, all eyes will be on what’s going to happen with Lawrence Shankland and whether or not Rangers can come up with an offer which will tempt Hearts into doing business.
“From what I hear, the interest is very real. The difficulty will be reaching an agreement on a price for a player who turns 29 next month and has only one year left on his current contract.
“Both clubs will have a firm opinion on his market value and they’re unlikely to be in the same ballpark.
Will Lawrence Shankland exit Hearts amid Rangers transfer speculation?
Rangers seriously need a new number nine this summer because their current options are nowhere near good enough to fire Clement’s side back above Celtic and to the Premiership title.
Hamza Igamane was signed to solve that problem, but he isn’t ready to be thrown straight into the fold which leaves only Cyriel Dessers and Danilo to lead the line for the Belgian and both players have their critics.
Dessers showed signs of improvement last term, but the Nigerian isn’t clinical enough to be a prolific forward while Danilo’s injury and fitness record is incredibly worrying and it seems unlikely he could remain fit for an entire campaign.
Shankland is an incredibly reliable number nine who knows the Premiership inside and out and he would be a real difference-maker at Ibrox.
Rangers should just pay the fee that Hearts are looking for now that they’re set for an influx of cash. It might be more than they initially expected, but it could be the signing that ends their wait for a league title.
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