“Rangers wanted me” - Gers target reveals Ibrox offer

“Rangers wanted me” – Gers target reveals Ibrox offer

Gavin Kelly | 10:00 10/07/21

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One former Vital Rangers favourite has revealed how he turned down the opportunity to sign for Steven Gerrard to have a crack at the Bundesliga after moving on a free transfer from Rapid Vienna.

Defensive midfielder Dejan Ljubicic might be a name familiar to some – he scored against us in the gaffer’s first season in charge – and the Austrian Under-21 international has confirmed that we had made him an offer, but explains why he rejected the Scottish champions to sign for nearly relegated Koln, as reported by The Daily Record:

“I had offers from several clubs in Germany and I was also in Italy for negotiations and Glasgow Rangers wanted me too.

“I decided on Cologne early on, but I admit I was worried when they had to win their relegation play-offs.

“My family and I decided immediately Cologne was the place for me because I will definitely get a start there too.

“And I need to play games because I want to play for Austria.

“Everyone wants to play for their country. I hope my performances in Cologne will convince manager Franco Foda to pick me for the World Cup qualifiers.”

Hard though it is to accept, it’s easy to see why he made the decision based on where he is from and that fact that he wants to play every week, something he simply wouldn’t get to do at Rangers given the depth of talent we have in midfield.

The other aspect is he has at least taken a big step up in terms of the league that he is playing in and good performances for Koln will not only help his international chances but will put him in the shop window for a move to an even bigger German side.

At 23-years old and on a free, he would have been a shrewd acquisition and it’s a shame we have missed out but knowing Ross Wilson, he’ll definitely have someone else lined up, you’ll just have to watch this space.