Celtic ‘vying’ for Swiss midfielder as transfer price tag set, Rangers ‘open talks’ for £4m-rated Honduran star

Celtic and Rangers are playing out the sixth and final Glasgow derby of the season at Ibrox and now have just three post-split fixtures remaining until plans can start to be ramped up ahead of the summer window opening.

With the 2022/23 season nearing its conclusion, transfer news stories are making the headlines on a daily basis. Here is the latest transfer news relating to both Glasgow clubs on Saturday, May 13:

Rangers ‘open talks’ for £4m-rated Honduran star

Rangers have reportedly moved to the front of the queue to sign Luis Palma after kick-starting talks with the Honduran winger over a summer move to Ibrox.

The 23-year-old, who plays for Aris Thessaloniki in the Greek Super League, has alerted interest from up to TEN clubs across Europe, but it seems Light Blues boss Michael Beale has stolen a march on their transfer rivals after being strongly linked with the player.

According to the Scottish Sun, Rangers have entered negotiations with the £4.4million star who has scored 13 goals and provided eight assists during an impressive debut season with Ermin Šiljak’s side.

Previously of hometown club Vida, the versatile playmaker moved to Greece for a six-figure transfer fee in January 2022 and is believed to be one of Beale’s top summer targets.

Capped six times by the Honduras national team, Palma still has three years reamining on his current contract with Aris but the club won’t stand in his way if they can make a significant profit. An official bid has yet to be submitted but his agent Paolo Hernandez previously stated Palma wants to test himself in a more competitive league.

He told La Prensa: “What’s obvious is that people are askin, teams’ scouting systems are putting out significant numbers and statistics. So there is interest in his work, in his game and in his performances. The European market will open up and the normal thing is that if he stays healthy for the rest of the games,what we all hope is that Luis will be in the transfer market this summer.

“He is grateful to Aris and the president for being the person who invested in him. It is not easy to take the risk of betting on a player who comes from a small team in Honduras and put him directly in to a club, who have 25,000 people every game, a lot of fans behind him. We are not taking them for granted. But the footballer’s dream and mine as the player’s agent, is to take a leap forward and go to a more competitive team and league.”

Celtic ‘vying’ for Swiss midfielder as price tag set

FC Luzern boss Mario Frick has confirmed captain Ardon Jashari will leave the club this summer, putting a number of interest suitors including Celtic on high alert.

The 20-year-old Swiss international midfielder is one of the most highly-rated young prospects in Europe and the Hoops are understood to be battling it out with Portuguese giants Porto as the leading contenders, with Lazio and Atalanta also set to make an approach.

A price tag of around £7million has been floated by the Swiss Super League club for Jashari who is in “great demand” but “still completely open” to which team he decided to join.

Frick expects to lose his key man after holding talks with the player about his future. Local publication Luzerner Zeitung report the ultimate aim for Jashari is to play Champions League football which will come into focus when he weighs up potential options at the end of the season

Frick stated: “We have to be realistic. It always depends on the type (of club he joins). If he takes the next step, he will experience tougher competition than here in Luzern. Then, he will have to use his elbows. But he came through a good school in Luzern.”

Celtic have displayed an interest in Jashari in previous transfer windows but a bumper fee will be required to complete a deal. The Scottish Premiership champions are said to be “above all” in the battle for his signature.