There are claims today that while Borna Barisic’s exit from Rangers has been secured at 2+1 years, current Ibrox team mate John Lundstram’s similar departure to the same destination, Trabzonspor, is not quite over the line as yet.
Club president Ertugrul Dogan dropped a major hint about the pair when asked about their joining his outfit when he said:
“It would not be right for me to confirm names here. Some are right, some names are wrong. But with regard to the names mentioned, I can only say we are working in coordination with the manager, Abdullah Avcı.”
About as close to a confirmation as we’ll get until their club announces it formally but it’s that update from a Scottish red top that Lundstram’s deal isn’t quite done as yet, and only Barisic for now is ‘confirmed’.
There will of course be the Rangers fan contingent who will only believe the story once our club announces it officially, and we don’t really blame them for being cautious such is the frequency of fake news these days.
But the fact that both players have been absent from the media in recent times along with rumours about the players’ recent night out (rumours we won’t substantiate here) would strongly suggest these deals are close in both cases, and not just complete in the Croat’s.
Is there a chance Lundstram will stay?
There appears none at this point – he wants a stronger wage and from what we’re now learning, Rangers are especially unwilling to give a 30-year-old player a three-year deal, only offering two.
Trabzonspor are willing to give the full 36 months.
So it’s only a matter of time it seems before both players get announced.
After all, from Dogan’s mouth:
“We plan to complete most of the transfers for the new season in the coming days. The aim is to start the season with a ready-made squad that the entire technical team has approved for the pre-season camp. Therefore, we are progressing that aspect of the work quickly with our manager and his team. We’ve done the hard part. Our aim is to give good news to the community of Trabzonspor supporters very soon.”
That could be even before Rangers’ season ends.