The January transfer window has officially been open for business for almost two weeks and Glasgow Rangers are yet to make a move to bolster their playing squad.
It has hard to hide away from the need for the Gers to improve Philippe Clement’s options on the pitch, given how far behind their rivals they are in the Scottish Premiership table.
The Light Blues are already 15 points behind Celtic in the division and lost to their Glasgow rivals on penalties at Hampden Park in the final of the League Cup last month.
Clement and technical director Nils Koppen are reportedly looking to add a new centre-back to the club, amid injuries to Leon Balogun, John Souttar, and Dujon Sterling, among others.
Burnley defender Hjalmar Ekdal is one of the reported targets on the radar for Rangers, but the Scottish giants could also benefit from adding more attacking options to the group before the end of the January transfer window.
The Gers currently have Vaclav Cerny on loan from Wolfsburg and they have to start thinking about what life may look like after his return to Germany at the end of the season.
Vaclav Cerny's form for Rangers this season
Rangers only signed the Czechia international on loan from the Bundesliga side and there is no option to make the deal permanent at this moment in time, which means that the forward is only due to be at Ibrox until the summer.
His return to Wolfsburg will be a big blow for the Gers ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, provided they do not manage to bring him back for a second spell, because he has been a huge player for Clement this term.
The left-footed whiz has racked up 12 goals and seven assists in 32 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants, including three goals and two assists in six outings in the Europa League.
These statistics show that the Czechia forward has the quality to provide a threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals on the right flank, cutting in on his left foot to devastating effect.
Appearances
20
Goals
9
Big chances missed
5
Key passes per game
2.6
Assists
2
As you can see in the table above, Cerny has produced plenty of quality at the top end of the pitch in the Premiership for the Light Blues, with 14 goals and ‘big chances’ created combined in 20 appearances in the division.
These statistics illustrate how big of a blow it is going to be when the 27-year-old star moves on from Ibrox at the end of the season, which is why the Gers must be attentive to the market to see if there is an opportunity to find his long-term replacement.
With this in mind, Clement and Koppen must reignite the club’s interest in Plymouth Argyle winger Morgan Whittaker, who has the potential to be Cerny 2.0 for the Light Blues.
Rangers' long-standing interest in Morgan Whittaker
The Gers have not been linked with an interest in the English attacker but they have been credited with wanting the forward in numerous windows in the past.
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They reportedly had an offer of £2m turned down by Swansea in the January transfer window at the start of 2023, two years ago this month, before Michael Beale reignited that interest in the summer, only for Plymouth Argyle to sign him on a permanent deal ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.
It was then reported last summer, in 2024, that Rangers wanted to sign the forward from the Pilgrims and that they were preparing a swoop for the left-footed dynamo to bolster Clement’s squad.
Journalist Alex Crook recently revealed that Championship sides Hull City and Burnley have both had bids turned down by Plymouth for the winger, although it remains to be seen how much they want for his services.
With interest in Whittaker seemingly hotting up, Clement must reignite the club’s long-standing desire to sign the English star this month, instead of missing out on him yet again.
Why Rangers should sign Morgan Whittaker
Some may look at his form in the current season and question why the Gers should splash the cash to bring him to Ibrox, as he has struggled at times in front of goal.
Whittaker has scored three goals and provided one assist in 18 appearances in the Championship this term, which is far from an impressive return at the top end of the pitch, albeit he did also score in a 1-0 win over Premier League side Brentford in the FA Cup at the weekend.
However, he is playing in a struggling Plymouth side that are currently bottom of the Championship, with just four wins, and that is why it has been difficult for him to thrive.
Rangers should, instead, look to his form from the 2023/24 campaign, as part of a Plymouth team that avoided relegation to League One, to see the kind of quality that he could produce on the right flank for the Gers as their eventual replacement for Cerny.
Appearances
46
xG
10.97
Goals
19
Big chances created
10
Assists
8
As you can see in the table above, the 24-year-old sensation provided consistent quality in the final third as both a scorer and a creator of goals, just as Cerny has for the Gers so far this season.
Whittaker, who was hailed as “exciting” by his former boss Steven Schumacher, has the ability to cut in on his left foot from the right to score goals consistently, as shown by his form last term, and can create ‘big chances’ for his teammates to find the back of the net.
Rangers could, therefore, sign him to be the long-term replacement for the Czechia international by signing him this month and giving him five months to settle in and learn from Cerny, before aiming to become a star for Clement in the 2025/26 campaign and beyond.
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Rangers will be active in the January transfer window
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It is now down to Koppen to make a move for Whittaker and to agree a fee with Plymouth to bring the winger to Ibrox before the end of the January transfer window.