Glasgow Rangers must be very disappointed with the way the 2025/26 campaign has gone, from the arrest of Russell Martin to the end of the season in the Scottish Premiership.
The Ibrox giants have failed to win a single trophy for the second season in a row, and will be hoping to break the deadlock under new manager Derek McInnes.
They opted to go with a domestic appointment, bringing him in from rivals Hearts, instead of looking south or abroad for a new manager.
In addition to joining the club, the Gers also looked close to home for new players with Lawrence Shankland and Cammy Devlin, brought in from Jam Tarts.
Rangers need more signings like Lawrence Shankland
Shankland was the club’s first signing of the summer transfer window, joining before Danny Rohl left to replace McInnes, and looks like a bad piece of business for the Gers.
The experienced Scot scored 88 goals in 171 games in all competitions for Hearts during his time at Tynecastle, and arrives at Ibrox as a proven goalscorer who should be expected to hit the ground running next season.
Shankland scored 16 goals in the Premiership during his campaign for Hearts in 2025/26, and only Motherwell’s Tawanda Maswanhise (17) beat him, scoring more than any Rangers player in this division.
|
25/26 Premiership |
Lawrence Shankland |
|---|---|
|
Appearance |
29 |
|
xG |
11.32 |
|
Goals |
16 |
|
Minutes per goal |
156 |
|
Conversion rate |
19% |
|
xA |
3.55 |
|
It helps |
3 |
McInnes, who managed him at Tynecastle last season, can rightly expect the 30-year-old striker to be a reliable presence in front of the Light Blues goal next season, as he is a proven goalscorer with Premiership experience.
The Gers should look to bring in more players like Shankland to bolster their squad because they come with the least risk of signings away from Scotland with no previous experience, as those additions may or may not adapt to the league.
Rangers join the race to sign their next Shankland
The 49ers may be playing it safe with their recruiting strategy this summer, as they look for a player who could step in as their next Shankland before next season.
Reporter Alan Nixon, via his Patreon, Glasgow Rangers are one of the clubs interested in a deal to sign Stockport County centre-forward Adamu Sidibeh in the summer transfer window.
The reporter says that Blackburn Rovers, Middlesbrough, and Bristol City from the English Championship are also in the race to sign the Gambian player.
He adds that Blackburn are currently leading the race for the 28-year-old number nine and they hope to agree a £1.5m fee with Stockport in the coming weeks.
The Gambian number nine will arrive at Ibrox as a Shankland-esque signing as he already has plenty of experience in Scottish football, having joined Stockport from St. Johnstone in the January transfer window.
During his time with Saints, the £1.5m-rated striker scored 18 goals and provided eight assists in 80 appearances, including six goals in the Championship in the first half of the last quarter.
|
Sidibeh (Stockport) |
League One |
The EFL Trophy |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearance |
19 |
3 |
|
xG |
5.71 |
N/A |
|
Goals |
6 |
3 |
|
Minutes per goal |
173 |
64 |
|
Great opportunities have been created |
1 |
0 |
|
It helps |
1 |
0 |
His form after moving south to Stockport was particularly impressive, with six goals in 13 League One appearances in the second half of the season.
Sidibeh scored nine goals in 1,232 minutes in all competitions for The Hatters, meaning he scored every 137 minutes for his current club, more often than Shankland did in the Premiership last term (157 minutes per goal).
Not only has he arrived as a striker in incredible form, but the Gambian will come in as a player who already knows what it takes to succeed in Scotland, having played 46 times in the Premiership at St Johnstone.
Sidibeh, who has scored five goals in nine games for his country, could join McInnes’ squad to be a great opportunity to back up the likes of Shankland, Youssef Chermiti and Bojan Miovski.
At a bargain price of £1.5m, the Stockport star could be a great cash addition to the squad to come off the bench when needed or start in cup competitions, providing body from his debut in Scotland and goalscoring quality.
Signing the likes of Shankland, Devlin, and Sidibeh would help build a core of players who are reliable and know what it takes to perform consistently in Scotland, which could allow the club to splash out on dangerous high-ceiling signings to take the team to the next level.
