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Reported Rangers target Ozcan signs for Borussia Dortmund – near miss?

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One-time reported Rangers target Salih Özcan has signed for Borussia Dortmund.

Last Summer, the link emerged from respected German football outlet Kicker, with further murmurs prevalent in January, earlier this year:

“Salih Özcan’s contract with 1. FC Köln expires at the end of June. An extension failed.”

“The U-21 international is looking for a new challenge for the next step in his career. Scotland’s champions, the Glasgow Rangers, have the Cologne in their sights.”

It goes to show that the club’s scouting network is on track, given the move of the player this week to the Westfalenstadion.

Having signed an extension last year with Cologne, Özcan went on to make 31 appearances in the Bundesliga across the 2021/22 season and now the 24-year old German-born Turkish international makes the short move across North-Rhine Westphalia to Dortmund.

He has been likened to a former BVB man with a similar background, Nuri Sahin:

“Özcan and former Dortmund man Sahin share a number of traits both on and off the pitch. The pair not only have common family roots – Sahin was also born in Germany before going on to have a 52-cap career with Turkey – but they are each gifted central midfielders with cultured left-foots and now Özcan follows directly in his predecessor’s footsteps for both club and country.”

Hopefully this won’t be the last of potential signings of that profile from Germany as whilst Rangers cant compete at the top level, there will be diamonds and quality to be unearthed, at the right time, like Özcan.

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