Bigger loss than Igamane: Rangers want "big, big fee" for "sensational" ace
Glasgow Rangers underwent a squad overhaul during the summer transfer window after a change in ownership and a change in the coaching department with Russell Martin’s arrival.
Kevin Thelwell also joined as the team’s new sporting director and the former Everton chief was given plenty of money to play with to bolster the squad ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.
Unfortunately, as shown in the graphic above, that ended with Martin winning five of his 17 matches in charge of the Ibrox giants before being relieved of his duties last month.
Thelwell’s attacking signings, in particular, have to be placed under the microscope as he signed Youssef Chermiti from his former club for a fee of £8m, the most money spent on a Rangers signing since Tore Andre Flo for £12m in 2000.
So far, the Portugal U21 international has only scored one goal in all competitions for the Light Blues, which shows that they have not received value for money on that £8m yet.
Chermiti was brought in after the club sold centre-forward Hamza Igamane to Lille for a fee of £10.4m, and it is fair to say that they have not replaced him very well on current evidence.
Where Hamza Igamane ranks in the most expensive Rangers sales
The Morocco international only went for a fee of £10.4m because of a reported release clause in his contract, which would have been in place before Thelwell took over as sporting director, which means that he cannot be blamed for that situation.
Igamane ended his only season with the Ibrox giants with a return of 16 goals and three assists in 49 appearances in all competitions, which included 12 goals in 33 outings in the Scottish Premiership, per Transfermarkt.
The 23-year-old attacker also showcased his quality in the biggest matches, scoring the winner against Celtic in the clip above and scoring four goals in the Europa League.
As you can see in the table above, the Morocco international does still rank as the third-most expensive sale in the club’s history, behind Nathan Patterson and Calvin Bassey, but the release clause possibly stopped him from climbing higher up that list.
His departure has been a big loss for the Gers, on top of that, as Chermiti and fellow summer signing Bojan Miovski have combined for two Premiership goals after coming in to replace him and Cyriel Dessers.
Whilst Igamane was a big loss in the summer, there is a Rangers star attracting interest whose departure from Ibrox would be an even bigger loss for Danny Rohl.
Rangers star attracting interest ahead of January
Journalist Pete O’Rourke has revealed that there are clubs circling around Light Blues central midfielder Nicolas Raskin ahead of the January transfer window.
O’Rourke told Football Insider: “There was interest in Raskin in the summer window from a number of clubs in the Premier League and across Europe as well. There is still interest in the Belgium international and that’s not going to go away.
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“I’m sure clubs are keeping tabs on the situation at Rangers. I don’t think Rangers ideally would want to lose him midway through the season. It would have to be a big, big fee for Rangers to even consider selling him, that’s what I think it would take for them to let him go in January.”
Football Insider adds that the Belgium international is ‘tempted’ by the prospect of a move to the Premier League in January, amid interest from Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur.
However, as O’Rourke outlined in those comments, it would take a significant fee for the Scottish giants to consider parting ways with the midfield star, whose contract expires at the end of next season.
Why Rangers must keep hold of Nicolas Raskin
The Light Blues must resist any attempts to prise the Belgian star away from Ibrox in January because losing him would be an even bigger blow than it was to sell Igamane in the summer.
Of course, the Morocco international’s goals were important and his absence has been felt, mainly because of Chermiti and Miovski’s struggles, but he mainly impacted games in possession with his attacking play.
Raskin, however, is an exceptional box-to-box midfielder who can influence matches with his play in and out of possession, which means that he is even more important than Igamane to the overall structure of the side.
The 24-year-old star, who scored against Dundee in the Premiership before the international break, produced four goals and ten assists in the Premiership during the 2024/25 campaign, whilst also winning 57% of his duels, per Sofascore.
In the current campaign, the midfielder has delivered one goal and two assists along with 6.7 duels won per game at a success rate of 54%, per Sofascore, which shows that he is impacting matches at both ends.
FotMob rating
7.50
3rd
Chances created
17
2nd
Assists
2
Joint-1st
Goals involvements
3
2nd
Passes completed per 90
52.3
6th
Tackles won
20
2nd
Interceptions
7
Joint-3rd
As you can see in the table above, the Belgium international ranks highly among his teammates in a host of key metrics both in and out of possession in the league this season.
In fact, Raskin ranks within the top 11% of midfielders in the division for duels won (60) and the top 18% for tackles won (20) in the Premiership this season, which shows that he has been a standout defensively both by Rangers and Premiership standards.
The former Standard Liege ace, who was once dubbed “sensational” by former teammate Scott Arfield, is clearly crucial to what the Gers do at both ends of the pitch, with his contributions offensively and defensively.
That is why losing him would be an even bigger blow than when they lost Igamane in the summer, as the Moroccan forward only won 39% of his defensive duels and made 23 tackles over the entire season in the Premiership last term, per FotMob.
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Therefore, even if a ‘big’ offer comes over the desk in the January window, the club should look to keep hold of him until they have the summer window to take their time to replace the midfield star.