da blaze casino： The January transfer window is less than a week away from opening for business and Glasgow Rangers could dip into the market to bolster their squad.
da apostaganha： Philippe Clement arrived at Ibrox in October and has not yet had the opportunity to make a single signing of his own since he replaced Michael Beale in the dugout.
Despite not having any of his own signings in the door, the Belgian tactician has won 13 and drawn three of his 16 competitive matches in charge and secured his first trophy – the League Cup – as the Gers boss.
It has been a terrific start to life in Scottish football and Clement could be eyeing up more pieces of silverware during the second half of the campaign; including the Scottish Premiership title.
The Gers are currently two points behind Celtic and have a game in hand over their rivals, which means that the title race is in their hands as it stands.
Rangers could bolster their chances of securing the league crown by making a statement signing next month and that could come in the form of Hearts star Lawrence Shankland.
Rangers transfer news – Lawrence Shankland
Clement has already confirmed that a new number nine is one of his priorities for the January transfer window as his options are threadbare in that department.
Kemar Roofe is currently on the sidelines and has now missed a staggering 86 competitive matches for the Gers since the start of the 2020/21 campaign.
Brazilian forward Danilo is also out of action and is set to be out until around April after he suffered a knee injury that has ruled him out for four months.
This has left Cyriel Dessers as the club's only senior centre-forward option during the festive period and that is why it is important for Rangers to bring another striker to Ibrox in January.
Writing for the Daily Record, former Gers forward Kenny Miller recently urged the Scottish giants to swoop for Shankland as he could make the difference during the title run-in.
The retired marksman hailed the Scotland international's all-round play and wrote that the Hearts ace, and Aberdeen's Bojan Miovski, is better than any striker at Rangers or Celtic currently.
This comes after TEAMtalk reported over the summer that the Gers were interested in a deal to sign the SPFL star during the summer transfer window.
They claimed that Shankland was high up on Beale's list of striker targets as the English head coach was eyeing up players to replace Alfredo Morelos, who departed on a free transfer.
The Light Blues ended up signing Danilo and Dessers instead but they are now in the market to find a replacement for the former, who will be on the sidelines for the next few months, and the Hearts gem could be a dream option to come in.
Danilo's season in numbers
Beale signed the Brazilian centre-forward from Dutch side Feyenoord in the summer in a reported deal that is worth up to £6m and he endured a mixed start to the campaign.
The 24-year-old whiz failed to score or assist in any of his four appearances in the Champions League qualifiers as the Gers ended up dropping down to the Europa League.
Danilo did, however, play a significant role in the club's League Cup success as the striker produced one goal and two assists in two appearances – including two assists against Hearts in the semi-final.
The ex-Ajax prospect also racked up four goals and one assist in 12 Premiership appearances under Beale and Clement combined, despite only being handed five starts.
He was able to shake off his Champions League struggles to impress in Europe as the attacker scored one goal and provided two assists in two Europa League starts during the group stage.
In total, Danilo has started ten matches (out of 21 appearances) in all competitions for Rangers since his move to Ibrox in the summer and has plundered six goals and five assists.
These statistics show that the former Feyenoord whiz has been terrific when called upon and is a reliable attacker in terms of his contributions as both a scorer and a creator of goals at the top end of the pitch.
This highlights what the Gers will be missing over the next few months and that is why Clement must swoop to sign Shankland as a replacement for Danilo during the January transfer window.
The statistics that show why Rangers should sign Shankland
The Hearts sensation is a proven Premiership performer who could come in and hit the ground running to give the Light Blues a boost in their pursuit of the title.
He knows what it takes to score goals at that level and has showcased his quality over the past 18 months or so, which suggests that he has the quality to be an excellent signing for the club.
Premiership
109
37
11
Championship
120
62
12
League One
45
34
13
League Two
33
11
Two
As you can see in the table above, Shankland has been a prolific scorer, and impressive creator, at every level of professional football in Scotland over the years.
In fact, he is currently the top scorer in the Premiership with his superb return of ten goals in 18 league matches for Hearts so far this season.
The Scotland international has only missed two 'big chances' in front of goal to reach double digits. Whereas, Dessers has spurned 11 'big chances' and only scored six goals for Rangers.
Shankland plundered 28 goals and four assists in 47 appearances in all competitions for Hearts throughout the 2022/23 campaign and is currently on 15 goals and three assists in 25 outings this term.
These statistics show that the £3k-per-week whiz, who was described as a "natural finisher" by journalist Josh Bunting, is a regular contributor with goals and assists at the top end of the pitch.
He has the quality to consistently find the back of the net in the top-flight of Scottish football without being wasteful with the chances that come his way and that is why Shankland could be a terrific signing for the Gers to replace the injured Danilo.