Fabrizio Romano declares winner in Arsenal, Newcastle Utd, Rangers and Chelsea transfer chase for starlet
The highly-rated Scottish-born teenager is also eligible to play for England
Rangers have swatted off fierce competition from THREE English Premier League giants to secure the signing of teenage talent Alfie Hutchison from Scottish Premiership rivals Hearts, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle United were all targeting a summer swoop for the highly-rated 15-year-old, but the Glasgow-born midfielder has instead opted for a move along the M8 from Tynecastle to Ibrox to continue his development.
With first-team boss Philippe Clement undergoing a major squad rebuild - supported by recruitment chief Nils Koppen - in an effort to bring immediate success to the club, the Belgian has placed a lot of focus on recruiting some of the country’s most promising young talents.
And the acquisition of Hutchison is viewed as another massive coup for the Light Blues, with the starlet chased by some of the biggest clubs down south. That’s according to Romano, who revealed the Scottish teen is also eligible to play for the Auld Enemy, England.
Uploading an image of Hutchison on social media posing at Ibrox with his royal blue shirt, complete with his name and the number seven while wearing the club’s training gear, Romano said on his Instagram story: “Talent Alfie Hutchison has joined Rangers from Hearts for training compensation."Alfie is eligible for Scotland & England and has attracted interest from Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle.”
Hutchison is expected to link up initially with the Gers’ Under-17s team - coached by former Ibrox full-back Steven Smith - before attempting to progress through their youth system.
It follows the recent capture of 16-year-old ‘wonderkid’ Alexander Smith, who looked at one stage to be Premier League bound having watched the likes of talented former Gers youngsters Billy Gilmour and Rory Wilson move south of the border before even reaching the first-team.