Better signing than Rothwell: Rangers in race to sign "exciting" £10m star
da mrbet： Russell Martin and his Glasgow Rangers players are already hard at work in pre-season as they prepare for their European qualifier later this month.
da fezbet： The new Gers head coach will be looking to progress through to the next round of Champions League qualifiers, and will want the best possible squad available to him at Ibrox.
Max Aarons and Lyall Cameron have already been added to the team during the summer transfer window so far, but the Light Blues will not stop there.
According to Sky Sports reporter Mark McAdam, central midfielder Joe Rothwell turned down LaLiga teams to join Scottish Premiership giants on a permanent deal.
The former Bournemouth star has put pen to paper on a three-year contract at Ibrox and could make his debut against Panathinaikos later this month.
What Joe Rothwell could bring to Rangers
Rothwell will bring an experienced head in the middle of the park that Rangers do not currently have. Nicolas Raskin (24), Mohamed Diomande (23), Bailey Rice (18), and Connor Barron (22) currently make up Martin’s midfield ranks.
This means that the 30-year-old maestro, who has played 204 games in the English Championship, could be a mentor to the younger players in the squad, and give valuable advice to the likes of Barron and Rice, as he has been there and done at a good level in the game.
The midfield whiz, who spent the 2024/25 campaign on loan at Leeds United, will also offer quality in possession through his impressive passing range.
Rothwell is a metronomic midfielder who likes to constantly get on the ball to progress play for his team with progressive passes and passes into the final third, helping to create chances for his teammates.
24/25 Championship
Joe Rothwell per 90
Percentile rank vs midfielders
Passes completed
63.74
Top 6%
Long passes completed
6.44
Top 2%
xA
0.22
Top 4%
Key passes
2.44
Top 1%
Progressive passes
6.64
Top 8%
Passes into the final third
7.40
Top 2%
Stats via FBref
As you can see in the table above, the experienced star provided plenty of quality on the ball in the 2024/25 Championship campaign with Leeds, who won the title to secure promotion to the Premier League.
He played in a ball-dominant title-winning side and showcased his ability to consistently progress play and create chances in the middle of the park, which suggests that he could thrive in a ball-dominant Russell Martin team chasing the Premiership title.
Whilst Rothwell, who is also capable of scoring screamers, looks set to be a terrific addition to the squad, Rangers are eyeing another midfielder who could be an even better signing.
Rangers in the race to sign former Liverpool gem
According to Liverpool-focused outlet DaveOCKOP, Rangers are one of a number of teams in the race to sign RB Salzburg central midfielder Bobby Clark in the summer transfer window.
The report claims that Liverpool could be due a sell-on clause fee as a result of the English starlet moving on from the Austrian side this summer, just a year on from his Anfield exit for a fee of £10m.
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It adds that Rangers, Leicester, West Brom, Sunderland, Koln, Eintracht Frankfurt, Hamburg, Birmingham, Leicester, and Southampton are all eyeing up a move for the midfield talent.
DaveOCKOP reveals that the former Newcastle United youth prospect is expected to look for a fresh opportunity to play elsewhere next season, and that there is a concrete chance that he will leave Salzburg.
However, it currently remains to be seen how much of the £10m that was paid for him last summer Rangers would need to pay to secure his services.
Why Rangers should sign Bobby Clark
The Scottish giants should push to win the race for the English midfielder this summer because he could be an even better signing for the club than Rothwell in the long run.
Clark is ten years younger than the signing from Bournemouth, at the age of 20, and this means that he has far more potential, both in terms of development and his viability as a long-term option for Martin in midfield.
If the Gers can land a deal for the Salzburg youngster, he could be a starting option in the middle of the park for the next decade if all goes well, whereas Rothwell is heading into the latter stages of his playing career.
Clark is not the finished article in the present, like Rothwell, though, after he only started seven of his 17 appearances in the Austrian Bundesliga last season, but he did show a lot of promise in the OFB Cup, the domestic cup in Austria.
24/25 OFB Cup
Bobby Clark
Appearances (starts)
2 (2)
Touches
217
Pass accuracy
85%
Key passes
8
Dribbles completed
12
Dribble success rate
63%
Ball recoveries
22
Duels won
30
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the English midfielder thrived as a starter in the cup across two appearances in the competition, creating eight chances and winning a staggering 30 duels.
Whilst it is an incredibly small sample size, it does show the kind of quality that he could provide if Martin is able to help him take the next step in his development after failing to earn regular starts with Salzburg.
Clark, who was hailed as “exciting” by reporter Lee Ryder, also showed a lot of promise during his time at Liverpool, with one goal and two assists in 14 first-team appearances for the Premier League giants, which earned him a £10m move to Austria.
The 20-year-old gem produced 18 goals and 11 assists in 64 games for Liverpool’s U18 and U21 sides combined, further illustrating the kind of attacking quality he can provide at his best.
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Therefore, Clark could be an even better signing than Rothwell because he could be an incredibly exciting midfield talent if Martin can unlock his immense potential as a dynamic, attack-minded, midfielder, who still has many, many, years left ahead of him to develop and improve.
