Rangers star won't stress over transfer noise 'distraction' as international ambition adds fuel to Ibrox fire
Ligue 1 club have enquired about the Light Blues striker
Rangers forward Youssef Chermiti claims his full focus is on Rangers currently despite ongoing transfer speculation.
The 21-year old had a shaky start to his career in Govan after signing from Everton for around £10m but grew from strength to strength as the campaign wore on, finishing with 15 league goals in 30 appearances. French giants Lyon have since made enquiries about the Portuguese Under-21 international however these talks have fallen through for the time being due to the club’s valuation of the player.
Chermiti is yet to win a senior international cap for his country and his hoping to rectify this during the upcoming season. Speaking at the club’s warm weather pre-season training camp in Spain, he reiterated that his full focus is on matters at Ibrox despite the outside noise and that he’s enjoying working under new manager Derek McInnes.
Rangers striker unfazed by transfer noise ‘distraction’
He told the Rangers Review: “I'm very happy here. I like Glasgow, I like the club and everyone likes me as well. I think everyone is just trying to help me with my development. It is not a distraction for me, to be honest I don't hear anything. I don’t hear any noise from outside the club. I leave that with my agent and my family.
“I'm just focused on this season and on Rangers. I feel very good in the city. Even my family is happy. 100 per cent, there is more to come from me. I think that's the target. I'm trying to get better every day. I think my target is, as I said in a few interviews before, I want to get into the national team [too]. That's my dream.”
Eyebrows were raised last season when the club signed Chermiti for an eight figure fee despite him only registering three previous career goals. However, with consecutive braces against Celtic and a hat trick against Hearts, his knack of producing moments in the big games has enhanced his reputation amongst the Rangers support.
Chermiti on new colleagues
The landscape of the club already looks a lot different following the appointment of McInnes after previous boss Danny Rohl left for RB Salzburg. Chermiti also has more competition for places at the top end of the pitch following the marquee signing of ex Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland. Bojan Miovski and Ryan Naderi also remain other options who can play as a number nine.
Chermiti has enjoyed the limited time he’s worked under the new gaffer so far and believes the current crop of strikers can help bring different attributes to the table. He continued: “I think the manager can help us all bring success. Everyone knows what the manager did last season. We know him as a player as well. He's been very good for us. He's been helping us as well. We're building a good relationship.
“I think everyone knows [Shankland’s] quality. He's a good finisher. I think we can help each other. I think we want to help each other. We have me, we have Bojan [Miovski], we have Ryan [Naderi] and now we have Lawrence. We’re a strong, strong unit and I think between us four, we have different skills. I think between the four of us, we can bring a lot of good things for the team.”