Rangers starlet wanted for Swansea City and Cardiff City transfer as rivals set to battle for signature
The young prospect has attracted interest from both The Bluebirds and The Swans.
It’s been a shaky start for Russell Martin at Rangers, as his side have drawn two out of two matches in their SPFL Premiership campaign.
A late equaliser at Fir Park meant The Gers were held to a draw at Motherwell, whilst the Ibrox side could only scrape a point against Dundee in their first home match. With the investment from the new 49ers Enterprise and Andrew Cavenagh at his disposal, Martin has made a plethora of signings in his new stint as Gers boss. Because of this, there has also needed to be some outgoings at Ibrox to balance out the squad.
Among others, Robin Propper, Leon Balogun and Ross McCausland have all left Ibrox this summer and with interest from EFL rivals, Cardiff City and Swansea City, it looks as if a young Rangers prospect could also hold an option to head for the exit door.
Swansea and Cardiff battle for Bailey Rice’s signature
Young midfielder, Bailey Rice was a breakout star for Rangers last season and was trusted by Phillipe Clement to play in some important Europa League fixtures. Rice featured eleven times in 2024/25, but has yet to appear for Martin.
According to EFL analysis, both Cardiff City and Swansea City are in the running to sign Rice. They say that despite Swans boss, Alan Sheehan’s interest in the 18-year old, Cardiff are hoping to ‘undermine their Welsh rivals’ as the two clubs are ‘fighting it out’ for the Rangers man.
Following the Bluebirds relegation from the EFL Championship last season, Swansea now find themselves in a higher division than their Welsh counterparts, which may give them a slight advantage in the race for Rice. Despite still being a teenager, Rice was praised last season for his passing ability and calmness on the ball, so it’s no surprise he’s attracting interest from other clubs.
Clement full of praise for ‘mature’ Rice
One man who certainly has confidence in the Rangers midfielder is former boss, Phillipe Clement, who gave the central midfielder a chance in the team. Most notably, the Belgian brought Rice on at half time at Old Trafford versus Manchester United in a Europa League clash, showing just how much faith he had in the 18-year old.
Clement gave Rice his first start at Ibrox in a 1-0 defeat to Queens Park, following that match he said: “Bailey played an OK game but the specific quality he has that will make him a top player – he didn’t use it in this game. That’s his really good passing forward to break lines. He’s a player I really believe in. I don’t give easy chances to 18-year-olds in big games. Bailey feels my confidence in him and it was interesting in our meeting to see how he reacted in that situation.
“He’s very mature and understanding of what he did wrong because he saw it himself. He’ll learn from it and it will be a good experience for him in the end. He’s motivated and hungry. It will make him better, there’s no doubt about that.”