Glasgow Rangers don’t appear to be completely finished with their transfer business this summer, with a few more players likely to arrive in the coming weeks to bolster Michael Beale’s squad.
That is despite seven signings already, as a total overhaul has been underway at Ibrox since the Premiership season finished in May.
The player trading model also appears to be in full swing at Rangers, with Beale maximising the value of his outgoings. Antonio Colak was signed for £1.8m last summer and has recently departed for a fee of £2.5m, while Fashion Sakala, who cost nothing in 2021, now looks set to leave for £4m, an impressive profit which could benefit the squad.
This should now be reinvested into the team, especially in regard to signing another centre-back as this remains the biggest issue at the club currently, despite the recent signing of Leon Balogun.
Leon King is injured, Ben Davies has attracted interest and although John Souttar ended last season well, he has a long history with injury problems and this could potentially disrupt another campaign, leaving Beale with a need to add someone else to his defence.
Are Rangers still keen on Jonathan Panzo?
According to Football Scotland, Rangers are still keen on signing Panzo this summer, although the finances still have to be ironed out if they are to secure his signature.
It will take a fee of £2.5m to sign the Englishman from Nottingham Forest and if Beale manages to move a few more players out the door in the next week or so, this shouldn’t represent much of a problem.
Could Jonathan Panzo improve Rangers?
The 22-year-old spent last season on loan at Coventry City from Forest and came so close to leading them back to the Premier League following a 22-year absence, losing in the playoff final to Luton Town.
Across his spell in the second tier, Panzo made 1.6 tackles, 1.7 interceptions and 2.9 clearances per game, and these figures would be good enough to rank him as sixth, first and second across the whole Rangers squad for the same metrics, suggesting he could offer some excellent qualities.
He even impressed compared to positional peers across the next big eight leagues in Europe, ranking in the top 8% for interceptions per 90 (2.01) and the top 15% for tackles per 90 (1.81) and given that he is only 22, there is still plenty of scope for improvement.
The youngster was hailed by Forest U21 coach Dave Rogers previously, who said:
"He is a great professional. He's enthusiastic and has got good experience and energy too. He brings a great vibe to the dressing room too."
These are all wonderful traits and something which Beale looks to be building at the club, filling the Ibrox side with young, hungry players who bring a good energy to the team and Panzo would be an excellent choice.
The Gers conceded 37 goals last year, which doesn’t sound too bad on the surface, yet it was six more than the previous campaign and improvements must be made to this key issue which could hamper Beale if it isn’t solved.