Rangers transfer bulletin as Oscar Cortes timeline emerges and Jefte stumbling block has a workaround
Two key deals could be concluded imminently and Record Sport understands both are moving fast.
Oscar Cortes is edging closer to joining Rangers as the Ibrox club prepare an offer for the Colombian whizzkid.
The Lens star has leapt to the top of Philippe Clement’s list of priorities now that the Ibrox gaffer has deals Fabio Silva and Mohamed Diomande over the line. Record Sport understands Rangers are set to pounce on a loan deal over the next 48 hours for the highly-rated 20-year-old winger. Clement has already revealed that he and recruitment chief Nels Koppen are prepared to work right up until the last seconds of the window to bring in new faces.
And Cortes’ name is the latest to excite the intrigued Ibrox support following the news that a deal for Brazilian ace Jefte could be on the move from Cyprus. Cortes has been allowed to skip international duty with Colombia’s Under-21 side in anticipation of an offer from Glasgow.
Former Gers hero Alfredo Morelos’ compatriot made his move to France last summer but has struggled for regular first-team action, making just four appearances for the Ligue 1 outfit so far. But Rangers are confident that a player who was his country’s top scorer at last year’s South American Youth Championships will do better in Scotland.
He won his move to Europe after bursting onto the Colombian scene with Millonarios, netting seven goals in 20 appearances for the Bogota outfit. It looks like he could be joined at Ibrox by another South American import, Fluminense ace Jefte - but only if Gers dig a little deeper to secure the left-back currently on loan with APOEL Nicosia.
Rangers have already hammered out terms on a £400,000 deal with the defender’s Brazilian parent club while also agreeing a three-and-a-half-year contract with the player. But sources in Cyprus say APOEL will be looking for a similar fee before they agree to cut the 20-year-old’s season-long stay short and clear the way for a move to Ibrox.
Jefte was left out of APOEL boss Ricardo Sa Pinto’s squad for their Friday night win over Nea Salamis. Now the only stumbling block to be overcome is the size of the compensation fee APOEL will demand for ripping up their loan agreement. But Record Sport understands they won’t be difficult to deal with after vowing to support the player’s ambitions to play at the highest level possible.
Jefte was sent for a 12-month stay on the Mediterranean island by Fluminesnse last summer as part of a plan to drum up European interest in the hotly-rated youngster. APOEL had hoped to make the deal permanent themselves - only to be thwarted by a FIFA transfer embargo.
They were one of 11 Cypriot clubs hit by world football’s governing body with a signing ban last month because of debts. That’s now opened the door for Rangers to pinch the player from under their noses.
APOEL president Prodromos Petrides revealed last month that the fee Fluminense were looking for to release the Rio-born stopper was ‘not prohibitive’.
Petrides said at the time: “The amount to buy Jefte is not prohibitive, but it can’t be done at the moment because of the embargo restrictions we have now. We want to make sure he stays until the summer and hopefully buy him then. The club would love to sign him permanently.”
With Jefte on his way, Clement must now decide what happens with Ridvan Yilmaz and Borna Barisic amid ongoing speculation over their long-term futures in Glasgow. Ibrox sources rejected claims in Turkey over the weekend that Galatasaray had returned with a new £2.5million offer for Yilmaz, who continues to impress having fought his way into Clement’s line-up. The Istanbul giants, however, haven’t given up and could make another move before the window shuts.
Barisic’s situation also remains shrouded in doubt. He’s out of contract this summer and while Record Sport understands tentative discussions have taken place with his agents, it’s not yet reached the point of a concrete offer being tabled.
Jose Cifuentes also remains in Scotland despite Gers chiefs accepting a £2million loan-to-buy bid from Rizespor. His US-based representatives are now in talks with the Turkish club but an agreement has yet to be made and the Ecuador international spent yesterday going through a training session at the club’s Auchenhowie base having sat out Saturday’s 1-0 win over St Mirren.