RANGERS have been namechecked as one of the clubs leading the January transfer chase for an English Championship striker.
A former England international has claimed Philippe Clement’s men are “very keen” to land the forward – but has revealed the conditions which must be met if a deal was to be struck.
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Joe Gelhardt is the player Rangers are reportedly eyeing up in the winter window.
The 22-year-old currently plays for Leeds United since joining from Wigan in 2020.
He was signed with an eye for the future by Marcelo Bielsa and was even one described as ‘a human wrecking ball’ by the legendary Argentine boss.
But he has found game time hard to come by over the last couple of seasons and was limited to just 10 appearances last campaign.
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Gelhardt was linked with moves away in the summer but he remained at Elland Road and has only been on the pitch for NINE minutes in the league from two brief cameos.
Several clubs are now lining up to land the out-of-favour attacker in January, including Rangers according to reports.
It has been suggested the Ibrox club are interested in taking the player on loan, but Leeds hero Carlton Palmer has his doubts.
He can’t see Rangers sanctioning a short-term swoop for the striker and believes they will only enter negotiations if a permanent deal is on the table.
“One of the clubs really keen on him is Rangers,” said Palmer when speaking to Football League World.
“They would prefer to strike a permanent deal to take the forward to Ibrox rather than strike a loan deal, or they want a clause where they can buy him after taking him on loan.
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“Which is always a sensible thing to do, because if a player goes out on loan you want the player to do well, but if he does well you want to be in the position to be able to sign him.
“If you don’t have a clause agreed to that, then it becomes a problem, so I understand why clubs aren’t willing to take players unless there’s a clause in place to buy them.”
Views and opinions can change very quickly in football.
Just last week Rangers fans were crying out for a new striker to provide competition for Cyriel Dessers.
The Nigerian has been the only striker available to Clement for large parts of the season amid fitness issues with Danilo and summer signing Hamza Igamane needing time to settle.
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However, the Brazilian ace is now back and available, while Igamane introduced himself in style in France with two goals and an assist against Nice.
Clement might well have needed another striker earlier in the season.
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SunSport columnist and Rangers hero Kris Boyd has admitted he doesn’t believes Igamane is the answer to Rangers’ problems yet.
But the Moroccan’s MOTM display on Thursday night will certainly give the Belgian boss food for thought going into the January window.
Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
