Giovanni van Bronckhorst admits he expects Ridvan Yilmaz to be announced as a Rangers player soon, and that his arrival could be the last of the transfer window.
The Gers have been in talks over the Turkish international left back in recent days and he was filmed saying an emotional farewell to his Besiktas teammates ahead of making the move to Ibrox. The £6million asking price the Turkish giants were seeking looked to be a stumbling block, but an agreement has since been reached.
Yilmaz is set to become the Light Blues’ seventh summer signing. John Souttar, Antonio Colak, Tom Lawrence, Rabbi Matondo, Malik Tillman and ben Davies have all checked into Ibrox so far. However van Bronckhorst also warned that Yilmaz will likely be the last unless others head for the exit door. Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos are both in the final year of their Rangers contracts, although the club are hopeful they can persuade the duo to extend their stay in Glasgow beyond next summer. Fashion Sakala has also been linked with moves to France, but he seems set on sticking around.
And Van Bronckhorst said: “It's well stated in the press about him. I won't lie, we hope we add a new player in the coming days, and we finish with the window if no-one goes. The player coming in is young and hopefully a player we can develop the same way as Calvin (Bassey) who is a good example, and Nathan Patterson (too).”
Van Bronckhorst also said Rangers will have to get used to facing the likes of Harry Kane as he set his sights on the Champions League group stage.
The England captain was in ruthless form as he turned the pre-season friendly around for Tottenham in front of a packed Ibrox crowd. Antonio Colak had put Rangers in front as the Croat netted his first goal for the club, however Kane netted a sensational double to claim the Walter Tull Memorial Cup for the English Premier League giants.
The first game of the season is just days away with Livingston first on the agenda in the Scottish Premiership, before facing Belgian outfit Union Saint-Gilloise in the Champions Leaguethird qualifying round. The Rangers boss is targeting a group stage place among Europe’s elite for the club for the first time in over a decade, and the Dutchman confessed that he wants to be facing elite strikers like Kane again soon.
Van Bronckhorst told RTV: "It's an excellent opponent. You want to play against teams at this level to make sure you are ready. You have to do everything right to win games. We started really well and I think we were both playing good football.
"We need to be at the top of our game for the first game of the season against Livingston. I am happy with the opposition we faced today because I would rather play against really good teams and try to develop ourselves as a team, and I think Spurs are an excellent team.
"We know this is the level you face when you are in the Champions League. We are going to work hard in August to get in the group stage. Harry Kane, Son, those players are top level in the world.
"You could see that today. You could see when they went off the Rangers fans applauded them as well because we all recognise the talent they have."
READ NEXT
