Out of favour Rangers star wants to be 'given a chance' by Danny Rohl as Celtic urged to make shock bid for Hearts ace
The latest stories coming from both sides of the Old Firm during the International break.
One of Rangers International stars claims he has been disappointed by his Ibrox game-time, while a former Celtic and Blackburn Rovers ace believes they should make a shock bid in January.
The International break couldn’t have came at a worse time for Danny Rohl as his Rangers side won three of their last three league matches. With some kind fixtures post-break as well, the Light Blues have a chance to get a winning run under their belt and kickstart their season. While a number of individuals have flourished under Rohl such as Mikey Moore and Jayden Meghoma, Albania International, Nedim Bajrami is yet to feature for the new boss.
On the other side of the city, Celtic are closing in on finding a new manager of their own, as Columbus Crew boss, Wilfried Nancy is now at the ‘advanced talks’ level of proceedings. On the flip side, Japanese forward, Daizen Maeda’s January departure is looking increasingly likely, with a number of English Premier League clubs interested. With Celtic already lacking depth in the final third, former defender, Charlie Mulgrew believes they should move in for Hearts’ talisman.
Here’s a look at the latest stories coming out of both Ibrox and Celtic Park:
Bajrami wanting to be ‘given a chance’ under Danny Rohl
Since joining Rangers from Sassuolo last year, Bajrami has had a Govan career full of ups and down. After his heroics for Albania at Euro 2024, the midfielder continued his good form in Govan at the start of last season. However, after a monumental dip in form at club level, he has since been dropped to the bench and was also omitted from the Europa League squad by Russell Martin.
As The Eagles aim to qualify for their first ever World Cup next year, Bajrami has been a regular feature for his National Team, but wants to get more minutes at Rangers in order to ensure he keeps his place in Sylvinho’s starting XI. He said: “I'm at Rangers, I'm fully focused there. I hope after the national team I can play and be given a chance. I'm in shape. Staying on the bench? it is difficult, I believe every player will want to play on the pitch”
Albania faced Andorra and England in their last two qualifying matches and did enough to secure a secure second place ahead of arch rivals Serbia. If Bajrami and co are to feature in USA, Canada and Mexico they will have to book their place through the play-offs.
Mulgrew encourages Celtic to sign former Scotland teammate
Former Celtic and Aberdeen man, Charlie Mulgrew believes Hearts number nine, Lawrence Shankland would be an ideal fit for the Hoops squad. Mulgrew played with the Jambos talisman at International level and was constantly ‘impressed’ by him in training.
Speaking on the Go Radio Football Show, he said: “I’ve been crying out for him for years, Shankland. For the last two years. I think he would’ve been good for Celtic. As a Rangers fan, Rangers would’ve been the best opportunity (for him). I played with Shankland for Scotland, when he first came into the squad. I didn’t know what to expect from him.
“When you’ve been in Scotland squads for a while and players come in, there’s maybe late call-offs or whatever, and you don’t know what to expect. And I couldn’t believe the way he held the ball in. I know he’s scored loads of goals, but the way he held the ball in, the way he brought players into play, I was really impressed by him.”