Rangers could be set to sign Jermain Defoe Mk II if newspaper reports are to be believed about the club’s continued interest in Kemar Roofe.
Speaking to Football Insider, former Leeds United striker, Noel Whelan has backed him to be a success after the Gers missed out on the forward last summer.
So what has Whelan said?
When asked about the report in The Scottish Sun linking the Anderlecht man with a return to British football, he said:
“Look, this isn’t the first time he’s been tipped with Rangers, is it? So this resurfaces itself again.
“I think he’d be tempted, he’s sampled football abroad and I think he wants that European football, which he’s going to get.
“He’s a goalscorer, you know? He works hard and he’s someone that gets you goals to win football matches. Obviously Rangers haven’t forgotten about him since his move to Belgium.
“This would be something we need to watch but it wouldn’t surprise me if they do go in for a player like that. He’s very much like a Jermain Defoe type, very busy, very quick in front of goal, knows where the back of the net is. I think that would be a very good move for both parties.”
So is Whelan correct?
Roofe was heavily linked with a move to Rangers last summer only for Ryan Kent to return to Ibrox and be the only significant outlay of the summer, with the ability to play centrally or wide, he is exactly the sort of dynamic, goalscoring attacker that Gerrard needs to supplement his front line which has struggled in the absence of Defoe and Alfredo Morelos.
Although the initial report claimed that Roofe was being lined up as a replacement for the Colombian international, Rangers are keen to add firepower to their team, and as a result, the ideal scenario would be seeing the 27-yeard old join Kent and Morelos to form a potentially lethal strike force.
With 7 goals and 3 assists in 16 games for Anderlecht, he has had a decent if unspectacular season in Belgium, albeit blighted by injury, and much would depend on how much of their £7million paid to Leeds United that they would want to recoup – it would be a real signal of intent from Gerrard and Rangers if Roofe was an addition rather than a replacement and an early marker in one of the most eagerly anticipated Premiership seasons in history.