Rangers are set to make changes at the heart of their defence this week with at least one coming in and two leaving.
Last term Rangers really struggled with their options at centre half, with John Souttar being the only guaranteed pick with his choice of partners being a reliable but aging and injury prone Leon Balogun who has now departed, Robin Propper, who never looked a fit for Scottish football, youngsters Clinton Nsiala, Leon King as well as right back’s James Tavernier and Dujon Sterling.
Rangers are looking to do early business on that position and have been linked with players such as Conor Coady and Luke Jelenic to add to the already recruited Emmanuel Fernandez in that area.
However, one central defensive recruit looks set to be announced as early as today.
Rangers are all but ready to reveal the signing of Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Nasser Djiga on a season-long loan deal.
Djiga is 22, 6 foot 4 and built like a tank. Wolves spent £10 million to recruit him from our old foes Red Star Belgrade in January but after just five English Premier League appearances they want him to head out on loan to gather some more experience and Ibrox looks set to be that destination.
A Burkina Faso international, Dijga started in his homeland with Vitesse before spells with Basel and Nimes before his move to Serbia in 2023.
He is another signing of size and power as Russell Martin looks to boost his sides physical presence ahead of the William Hill Premiership campaign.
With his arrival it leaves us with a large number of central defenders, and many will need to depart, and two in particular look set to go sooner rather than later.
Speaking after the clubs 2-2 pre-season friendly draw with Club Brugge yesterday Martin spoke about Nsiala saying he expects the Frenchman to depart Ibrox only a year after joining from AC Milan.
He said: “Clinton needs to be playing at this stage of his career” and after speaking with him they have agreed he should look for new opportunities. It is yet unclear whether this will be a loan or permanent departure.
The big news post-Brugge is that we have seen the last of Propper with the Dutch defender also set to depart after a year in Govan.
Following a poor showing on Sunday the new boss’ mind seems to be made up on Propper with sources suggesting he will not travel with his teammates to their intensive training camp at St George’s Park, home of the England national team.
Propper looks set to return to FC Twente in his homeland for a fee believed to be around £1.5 million and the deal should be concluded this week, and before the Panathinaikos game on the 22nd at the very latest.
A decent European defender he was just not suited to the physicality of the Scottish game, and this is a quality we look to be addressing with our summer recruitment so far.
Ben Davies also looks set for a return to England before the end of the window, with Leon King also set for a departure, likely on loan, for the final year of his deal. Fellow defender Ridvan Yilmaz may also depart following his change of squad number from 3 to a lesser squad members number of 33.
All in all, a major shake-up is underway at the heart of Rangers' defence, and not before time. Last season’s fragility at centre-back cost the team dearly in key moments, and Martin is clearly wasting no time in reshaping the spine of his side.
The incoming Djiga brings the physicality and stature that have been lacking, while the departures of Propper and Nsiala mark a clear shift toward a more robust and resilient back line.
With further outgoings likely and at least one more addition expected, the transformation is far from over. But one thing is clear: Rangers are building a defence designed not just to survive the rigours of Scottish football, but to dominate.