Rangers, Chelsea and Tottenham register 'concrete interest' in talent who rivals Lamine Yamal in key area
Rangers look set to rival Chelsea, Tottenham and European heavyweights for an emerging talent.
He rivals Barcelona superstar Lamine Yamal in a key area - and now Rangers are set to rival the likes of Chelsea and Tottenham for his services.
Recruitment has been under fire at Ibrox after a disappointing summer transfer window, but it will now be on Kevin Thelwell and the sporting director’s talent spotting team to make amends this winter. One player reportedly on their radar is Nigerian talent Sani Suleiman.
His midfield performances with AS Trencin have caught attention and shining at the U20s World Cup has only bolstered his stock. That’s why, according to transfer market expert Rudy Galetti, Rangers are keen on his services, but competition from Chelsea and Tottenham will prove a stern challenge. There’s also European heavyweights to contend with in a star who’s dribbling stats rank with Yamal’s in La Liga.
What player do Rangers like ahead of January transfer window?
Galetti wrote via Substack: “Sani Suleiman has earned a place among the best young players in Europe. The CIES Football Observatory recently ranked the 19-year-old Nigerian midfielder in the Top 10 U20 players worldwide for successful dribbles and progressive carries across 66 leagues. Sitting 6th in the list, just behind names like Lamine Yamal and Yan Diomande, Suleiman continues to prove his remarkable potential and technical maturity.
“Progress has not gone unnoticed. Several top European clubs are now tracking his situation closely. As previously revealed, Chelsea, Tottenham, Rangers, and Bayer Leverkusen have already expressed concrete interest and now top Serie A sides have joined the race, making moves to position themselves ahead of the competition. Suleiman is currently under contract with Trencin until June 2026, with the Slovak club holding a two-year extension option that could keep him until 2028.”
Thelwell told Rangers TV on January recruitment: “You probably have a couple of days grace after the transfer window that finishes, but then the work really starts in earnest. That begins with a review and evaluation of the work that has been done so far.
Kevin Thelwell on January transfer window at Rangers
“What did we do well in the window? What didn’t we do well? What can we learn from what we did or didn’t do? And then use that information and intelligence to move us forwards. It’s a slightly different situation for us in our context because we lost a Head Coach and we’ve appointed a new one in Danny.
“We’re very keen to ensure he is an integral part of that process going forwards. We spent a couple of weeks allowing Danny to evaluate the group and we had a big meeting this week to sit down and talk about his feelings on the group so far. We’ll use that information, plus the information from the owners and other sources, to start to plan for January, and we do expect to be fairly active.
“It’s important for me to say that while I, and others, do a lot of work behind the scenes to make sure we bring targets to the table that we think could improve the group, it’s really about Danny having the final say in these moments. It’s important as a Sporting Director that you don’t bring players that the Head Coach doesn’t want to sign off on, so it’s very much about us working together for Danny to have the final say.”