Rangers eye loan move for “aggressive” £9m star who’s better than Propper

Glasgow Rangers had the chance to deliver yet another statement performance on Sunday to back up their stunning Old Firm victory a few days prior.

Instead, it was the same Rangers that the Ibrox faithful have seen so often this term. A side that simply cannot finish a team off, no matter how many goals in front.

Hamza Igamane scored two within the first 20 minutes. The first was a well-drilled effort into the bottom corner, while the second saw the Moroccan frontman exude his Alfredo Morelos-like qualities by netting a wonderful header.

Despite the youngster eventually scoring a hat-trick, the Light Blues conceded three to draw the game 3-3 and slip further behind Celtic in the Premiership table.

Philippe Clement needs to bring in a few new signings this month, especially in defence.

With this in mind, it appears as though the Ibrox side have been linked with a move for a Ligue 1 defender…

Rangers eye move for Marseille defender

According to journalist Saber Desfarges, who works for French outlet Telefoot, Rangers are reportedly interested in a move for Marseille centre-back Bamo Meite this month.

The Ligue 1 side are willing to allow the player to depart, with the Gers looking to secure a loan move between now and the end of the season.

Montpellier are also keen, but it appears that Marseille are looking for a fee for the player, who only moved to the French Riveria on a permanent deal last summer.

This could prove to be a stumbling block, especially with the financial uncertainty surrounding the club at the moment. It may mean several players have to be sold before anyone can be brought in.

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Clement has several centre-backs out injured at the moment, which heightens the need for a few reinforcements for this position and Meite could be an excellent signing if given a chance in the starting XI.

Why Rangers need to sign Meite

The Ibrox side may have conceded just 16 goals across 20 league games so far this term, but this is still nine more than Celtic and is ultimately what the title race is boiling down to.

Consider the four games over the festive season as a starting point. The Gers dropped points against St Mirren (lost 2-1), Motherwell (drew 2-2) and Hibs (drew 3-3), with their only clean sheet coming, ironically, against Celtic during the 3-0 victory at Ibrox.

John Souttar missed all four matches, while Leon Balogun had to come off against St Mirren, subsequently missing the next three matches. James Tavernier missed the latter two matches too.

This meant Clement had to move left-back Ridvan Yilmaz to the right side of the defence, while unleashing Dujon Sterling, a right-back, alongside Robin Propper. Not ideal.

The 3-0 win over Celtic certainly appears an outlier considering the other three results, but Propper may be one of the club’s main issues with Meite a required replacement this month.

How Bamo Meite compares to Robin Propper

Upon his arrival, signing a defender who had played over 200 Eredivisie games during his career appeared to be a solid move, especially considering he cost just £1.5m.

Brought in to replace Connor Goldson, it hasn’t exactly been plain sailing, that’s for sure. Propper has struggled majorly with the physicality of Scottish football, appearing not robust enough to cope with the demands.

In Europe, the Dutchman has won just 45% of his total duels per game, while losing possession 7.8 times, committing 1.5 fouls and being dribbled past 0.5 times per match in Europe’s second-tier competition.

The move hasn’t worked out as Clement anticipated and, combined with his injury issues in defence, hopefully, there will be a couple of new players for this position by the end of the month.

Bringing in Meite on a six-month loan would make a lot of sense, especially given his form for Marseille last season.

The 23-year-old has only played three games for his club this term, featuring for 24 minutes in total. Therefore, looking at his statistics from 2023/24 is the best way to judge how good a player he is.

He moved to Marseille on a loan deal from FC Lorient and made a total of 25 appearances for the French giants.

Comparing his stats from then to Propper’s numbers this term, it is clear he could be an upgrade on the Dutchman.

Indeed, Meite averaged a higher pass success rate than the former Twente titan (91% vs 90%), while being dribbled past on fewer occasions (0.3 vs 0.4), winning a higher percentage of aerial duels (68% vs 61%) and losing possession fewer times (3.8 vs 8.5) per outing in their respective leagues.

When compared to his positional peers across Europe’s big five leagues, Meite’s defensive statistics stand out. Not only does he rank in the top 92% for tackles per 90 (2.18), but the youngster also ranks in the top 86% for clearances per 90 (5.15) and in the top 80% for blocks per 90 (1.6), indicating how impressive he has been for his club at the heart of the defence.

It is a no-brainer to sign a player with these qualities, especially if a fee doesn’t have to be paid. Meite could be an ideal short-term option to fix the current defensive issues which are plaguing the Ibrox side at the minute.

Scottish content creator and founder of the Rangers Journal, Kai Watson, hailed the Ivorian as “physical and aggressive” amid the recent links and this is exactly the sort of profile the club requires.

With far too many easy goals being conceded, Meite appears to have the required physicality which could ensure Premiership attackers aren’t offered as many chances in the final third.

The transfer window is still only a few days old, but making a signing sooner rather than later will perhaps give Clement some credit in the bank. Only time will tell.

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