Glasgow Rangers supporters were made to wait for the second signing of the January transfer window, but the wait was worthwhile.
The Gers announced the signing of midfielder Mohammed Diomande recently, as Philippe Clement appears to have been significantly backed by the board, and it is a signing which shows some ambition.
The Ibrox side have the chance to win the treble in the coming months and bolstering his squad gives the Belgian manager the best possible chance to complete what would be an incredible feat, especially considering how poor the club were during the opening months of the season.
With two signings now through the door during the current transfer window, could there be more before deadline day next Thursday?
According to a prominent journalist, the Gers may have secured signing number three…
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Diomande moves to Glasgow on an initial loan deal before the Light Blues have an obligation to buy during the summer transfer window, and he will fit right into Clement’s side.
Having waited three weeks for signing number two, it looks as though Clement is closing in on his third arrival of the month. That is according to Fabrizio Romano, who took to X to share a transfer update.
Now it looks as though it is a waiting game before he can be properly announced, and the move has seemingly come out of nowhere.
The defender is currently on loan in Cyprus from Fluminense, and he would have to terminate his loan spell there before moving to Ibrox.
APOEL coach Ricardo Sa Pinto was asked about Jefte’s future as he was left out of their recent victory, saying: "With Jefte, this is an internal matter that is currently being handled by the club.
"If there is anything new we will inform everyone officially. Be patient and the information will be clear in the next 24 to 48 hours."
This update could give an indication of how long it will take for the Brazilian to join the Gers, and hopefully it will occur in the next few days.
It is no secret that Clement has been aiming to bolster the left-back slot, and now it looks as though the club have signed a promising young South American, and he could eventually be an upgrade on Borna Barisic.
What this move means for Borna Barisic’s future
The Croatian defender has been with the Glasgow side since 2018, and it didn’t take him long to emerge as a key player during Steven Gerrard’s reign at the club.
Across five and a half seasons, the 31-year-old has played 225 times for the club, winning three major trophies while he was arguably at his best during the 2020/21 campaign – the season in which a ten-year league title drought ended in stunning fashion.
Barisic not only registered seven goal contributions that term, but he also averaged 2.2 key passes per game along with creating nine big chances and these are sublime figures for a left-back.
His attacking talents have always made up for some poor defensive lapses during his stint in Scotland, but with just a few months remaining on his current contract, it looks as though he could be close to an exit.
Jefte may be a rough diamond and a player who is still developing, yet if given the chance in Scotland, he could eventually be a big upgrade on the Croatian, especially due to his attacking ability.
How Jefte compares to Borna Barisic
The 20-year-old has yet to make his debut for Fluminense and was sent on loan to APOEL to gain some crucial first-team experience.
It has been a solid loan spell thus far for the Brazilian, as he has registered seven goal contributions – three goals and four assists – in just 20 matches and this is five more than what Barisic has achieved in the Premiership this term.
Not only is the youngster more effective in the final third with regard to goal involvement, but he has also registered more shots per game (0.7 vs 0.6) than the current Rangers player, along with succeeding with more successful dribbles per game (2.4 vs 0.3) and delivers a higher percentage of accurate crosses (41% vs 32%), clearly demonstrating his talents going forward in Cyprus.
Kai Watson, founder of the Rangers journal, profiled the left-back amid the news of his apparent signing and he lavished him with praise.
He said: “Jefté looks like he will be a quality attacking threat. He’s tall and quick while still remaining agile on the ball. He always looks to drive at the opposition defence and is comfortable going outside or cutting inside.
“He’s also not afraid of having a pop at goal and has a thunderous strike in his arsenal. He looks like he could be a creative threat while also offering some goalscoring prowess himself.”
Calvin Bassey
£22.5m
2022
Nathan Patterson
£16m
2022
Alan Hutton
£9m
2008
Giovanni van Bronckhorst
£8.5m
2001
Jean-Alain Boumsong
£8m
2005
Watson also goes on to state that Jefte registers a goal contribution once every 179 minutes, while Barisic registers one every 429 minutes and Ridvan Yilmaz takes 475 minutes per goal contribution.
Given that Clement likes his full-backs to attack and bomb down their respective flanks, the signing of the 6-foot Brazilian could prove to be very astute indeed.
It looks as though Clement is signing players who are young and on the up rather than luring former starlets from England and this system could certainly allow him to establish a proper player trading model.
The club have been left behind by the ability of Celtic to move on their young talent for massively inflated fees, and to get back on a level footing, the Belgian must nurture the talented players he has before moving them on for a solid profit after a few years of service.
Players such as Diomande and Jefte could be perfect examples of this and with a few days left of the transfer window, there may be another surprise or two in store for the expectant Ibrox faithful.
