Rangers could be ready to finally solve the defensive issues with a move, yet again, for Millwall’s Jake Cooper, the longest-linked player on Rangers’ list.

The huge defender, 28, was subject to a Steven Gerrard bid of £3M in 2018, but Millwall believed he was worth at least double that and rejected the deal, and Rangers haven’t made any concrete moves since then.

But today everyone’s favourite clickbait outlet, football insider, claims the club are to make a bid yet again for him, with his contract expiring next summer.

His current market value is around £3M, with just that one remaining year on his deal, and if Rangers were to make a serious move for him they’d hope to get some ‘discount’ on that number as the club did very successfully with Jose Cifuentes.

The big deal about Cooper, aside his colossal height, is he’s a leftie.

Rangers have written off Ben Davies as a fail, and he, aside rookie Johnly Yfeko, is the only such defender the club has.

Ergo Michael Beale, realising, at long, long, long last that Rangers need defenders, appears to be wanting to finally secure Cooper.

Is this one a goer?

Well the source is unreliable at best and downright fabricators at worst, but we do know Rangers have wanted Cooper for a long time, Beale and Gerrard being big admirers of his ability.

But there’s also that nagging feeling that at 23, his potential looked bigger than it ended up being, and he remained in the Championship the entire time at the Den rather than getting a Premier League move like would be expected for a young and promising defender in the Championship.

Is he good enough for Rangers? He looked like it at 23, but 5 years later, still in the same place in his career, we’re not as convinced.

He’s aged, but maybe not progressed, and never made that step up to the Premier League. Did he turn offers down? Maybe, we couldn’t tell you.

But if these reports are true, Rangers are going back in for the longest-term target we believe the club has.

And we wouldn’t object to this addition.