Sky Sports News journalist Michael Bridge expects Rangers duo Ryan Kent and Joe Aribo to be the subject of interest ahead of the summer transfer window.
The lowdown
Both players have already been linked with moves to English Premier League clubs in recent months.
The Daily Mail have claimed that former Rangers boss Steven Gerrard is keen on a reunion with Kent at Aston Villa, while a report from Football Insider in the autumn claimed that Crystal Palace were eyeing up Aribo.
The Gers have already sanctioned one lucrative sale to a top-flight club south of the border in 2022, agreeing to let Nathan Patterson join Everton for £16m.
The latest
Speaking to GiveMeSport, Bridge said that Rangers could well receive approaches for the duo, feeling ‘sure’ that the form of Aribo in particular won’t have gone unnoticed.
The journalist claimed: “I do expect Kent, and I do expect Aribo to get interest, I really do. I know you’ve touched on Aribo before with Palace, and I’m sure clubs will look at him. He’s a really, really, really good player.”
The verdict
From Rangers’ point of view, there’s potentially a business decision to be made here.
At the end of this season, both Kent and Aribo will be into the final 12 months of their contracts. If neither of them has penned a new deal by January, then they will be able to negotiate pre-contract terms with clubs outside Scotland.
That could see the club lose two of their most valuable assets – they both rank in Transfermarkt’s top three in terms of market values for Rangers-owned players – for nothing.
Their first choice may be to keep both Aribo and Kent at the club, but if that isn’t realistic, cashing in on them when they can maximise income from their sales could be a smart move.
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