Rangers eye move for ‘impressive’ Diomande upgrade

fair to say Rangers safe Philippe Clement there is a lot to do in the January transfer window.

Ahead of the New Year’s Old Firm derby coming to Ibrox on Thursday afternoon, the Gers are a staggering 14 points behind the league leaders and fierce rivals Celtic.

A last-gasp defeat at St Mirren on Boxing Day, followed by a 2-2 draw at Motherwell three days later, increased the pressure on Clement, so he will be looking for reinforcements this month.

Rangers interested in new midfielder

According to a journalist’s report Ižak Ante Sučić for GermanijakRangers, as well as Club Brugge and AZ Alkmaar, are interested in the midfielder from Varaždin Leon Belcar.

They add that the 22-year-old is contractually bound to the Croatian club until 2026, but that they plan to “earn a lot of money from him”.

Varaždin President Dražen Vitez claims he has yet to receive any official offer for Belcar, he is only willing to sell his most valuable asset for more than €700,000 (around £580,000), with Transfer of Karel Lusavac to The Danish equipment Horsens is used as a benchmark.

So who is Belcar and how would he fit into the Rangers team?

Where would Leon Belcar fit in at Rangers

Belcar is a 22-year-old defensive midfielder, who works in the base of Varaždin’s back line, starting all but one of their own HNL games this season, and the only one he missed was due to suspension.

Despite his defensive instincts, Belcar has scored three goals this season to date, the latest coming from the edge of the penalty area in a 2-1 win over Šibenik at the end of November.

Internationally, he has earned six caps for Croatia’s U21 national team, although he will not add to that tally as the Young Flames were heartbreakingly beaten by Georgia on penalties, missing out on a place at this summer’s U21 Euros in Slovakia.

Could Belcar spend 2025 adjusting to life in Glasgow instead? Let’s see how he compares to Rangers’ two most-used central midfielders.

As stated above, Nicholas Raskin comes out on top for most of the metrics involved, but that shouldn’t be too surprising given his excellent form this season, with ex-Rangers defender Alan Hutton describing the Belgian as “brilliant”, adding that he must be the first name on the list in midfield.

However, Belcar is compared to Mohamed Diomandé, who has made 28 appearances in all competitions so far, including starting seven of eight Champions League or European league matches.

But that’s exactly why Belcar – whose figures are still “really impressive” in through the eyes of Scottish football content creator Kai Watson – would be a success. He is a different style of midfielder; Raskin excels in possession, while the young Croatian is the best on the ball.

The Rangers have a somewhat recent history when it comes to signing talent from the Croatian top league, with mixed success.

After the victory over Osijek in the qualification for the Europa League 2018. Steven Gerrard was so impressed by what he saw signed two players of the White and Blue.

Eros Grezda The 17-game stay at Ibrox was, at best, forgettable, but the other member of this double bargain he was Borna Barisic, who would do 236 appearances for the Gersbecoming a cult hero, a key figure as they conquered Premiership title in 2021 and then reached the Europa League final the following season.

That same summer seven years ago, Nikola Katić came from Slaven Belup in Koprivnica and, while he was far from a great success, his header at Parkhead in December 2019 means he will never be forgotten.

Thus, Belcar could become the last Croat to leave his mark in Govan.