Rangers managing director Stewart Robertson has revealed contract talks with Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos are ongoing. But he admits retaining them might not be as straightforward as it seems, leaving the ball in their court for a "big decision."
Morelos and Kent are both out of contract at the end of the season and will be able to sign pre-contracts elsewhere from January. That's a situation Rangers are keen to avoid with the two attackers among their most valuable assets.
Kent has remained a key figure under Gio van Bronckhorst while Morelos has fallen by the wayside in recent months thanks in part to the emergence of Antonio Colak. But Robertson insists the club are keen to keep both tied down, with talks underway to extend both deals beyond the summer of 2023.
He told Rangers Review : “With Alfredo and Ryan, those discussions are happening. The guys have got until the end of May in their existing contracts. We will try to engage with players when we want them to extend. Some will want to take time because it's a big decision for them."
Rangers had looked set to lose Connor Goldson for free in the summer and his dramatic U-turn to stay at Ibrox will give them hope there is plenty of time for Kent and Morelos to do the same. Robertson went on: "Connor signed for us once again in the summer and it was a big move for Connor.
"He's from the Midlands, he's got a young family, his support network is down there. I understand why players have multiple reasons why they may not want to extend their contract at the end of the day.”
But while losing players for nothing is a frustrating prospect, Robertson points out that Rangers have used contract situations to their advantage in the past with Joe Aribo and Calvin Bassey - hinting it's something they might look to do again in the future.
He added “We've also benefited from players running down their contracts. This isn't a one-way street. We were able to sign Joe Aribo because he ran down his contract. We were able to sign Calvin Bassey because he ran down his contract. Two very important players for us last season. It can work for you and against you.”
READ NEXT
