Out of favour Rangers ace remains on Turkish giants' radar in shock post-window swoop despite transfer denial
Super Lig clubs are still able to business as their Deadline Day is on Friday
Rangers midfielder Nico Raskin looked to have been building bridges with the manager but was omitted from their weekend squad.
As Russell Martin prepares to face Hearts at home on Saturday, once again his team selection will be making the headlines. The Rangers boss is yet to register a league win in his first four games, as discontent amongst the fans and players heightens. Rangers opponents currently sit second in the table on goal difference to Celtic. Derek McInnes has had a superb start to life in Edinburgh as Hearts’ new boss has earned ten points from a possible twelve. The Jambos will travel to Glasgow full of confidence they can beat Rangers at Ibrox.
Another thing that will give the Hearts manager encouragement, is Martin’s omission of Nico Raskin, who yet again won’t be a part of the Rangers squad. According to Dutch media, Raskin said a transfer is ‘out of the question’, but there are still a few clubs who have an eye on him.
Fenerbahce and Besiktas still after Raskin
Despite Deadline Day being 1st September in most countries, there are a few exceptions as the transfer window is still open in Saudi Arabia, Portugal and Turkey. For the latter, the window will close tonight, however Istanbul giants Besiktas and Fenerbahce are looking for some late additions.
According to Turkish media: “Fenerbahçe and Besiktas will face off on transfer Deadline Day, with both teams keen to sign Nicolas Raskin.” The report came after it was announced that the Belgian International wouldn’t feature against Hearts on Saturday.
If Raskin were to join Fenerbahce, he would be reunited with manager, Domenico Tedesco, who gave him his International debut for The Red Devils. Alternatively, Besiktas boss is also in the hunt for Raskin’s signature as head coach, Sergen Yalcin looks to acquire midfield reinforcements.
Peculiar timing of Raskin’s squad omission
Despite not being selected for the game against Celtic, it looked as if Nico Raskin and Russell Martin were putting there differences aside after the International break, however as lightning strikes twice, it indicates that there still are some underlying issues. Raskin scored for Belgium during the International break, playing alongside the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Thibault Courtois.
In Martin’s press conference he claimed that the issue between him and Raskin had been ‘resolved’ but his actions suggest otherwise. Perhaps, this is where the new-found interest from Turkey is coming from. The former Standard Liege man has two years left on his current Rangers contract and the club will be desperate to avoid him going into his final 12 months without resolving the feud.