da apostaganha： Bojan Miovski’s first hat-trick for the club spearheaded Glasgow Rangers to a 5-0 win over Annan Athletic in the SFA Cup at Ibrox on Friday night.

da aposte e ganhe： The Macedonia international has lost his place in the side to Youssef Chermiti in recent weeks in the Scottish Premiership, but provided a reminder of his quality with three strikes.

This game provided several lesser-seen players with an opportunity to get some minutes in their legs, but that does not mean that they will still be at Ibrox when the January transfer window slams shut.

Nasser Djiga made his first start for the Light Blues since the middle of December, having gone to the African Cup of Nations with Burkina Faso, and he should be sent back to Wolverhampton Wanderers before the end of the month.

Why Rangers should cut Nasser Djiga's loan short

The Scottish giants currently have the central defender on loan from the Premier League side until the end of the season, but they should look to send him back to Wolves if both parties can agree.

Rangers have won five of their last six Premiership matches without Djiga in the squad, keeping three clean sheets in that time, with John Souttar and Emmanuel Fernandez forming a formidable partnership at the back.

The Burkina Faso international has not done enough in his appearances this season to suggest that he will break into the team over those two defenders, as there have been too many errors in his performances, most notably against Club Brugge in the clip below.

On top of that mistake, Djiga was sent off in a 1-1 draw with Dundee in August in the Premiership and made an error for Braga’s goal in the 1-1 draw with the Portuguese side in the Europa League, which shows that he has made costly mistakes.

With Derek Cornelius due to return from injury to provide cover on the left-sided centre-back role, Danny Rohl still needs a defender to come in and cover the right-sided position before he can move on from the Wolves flop.

The centre-back Rangers must sign to replace Djiga

The Light Blues cannot end Djiga’s career at Ibrox without having the back-up that they need in the centre-back positions already in their squad, which is why they need to make a move in the January transfer window to facilitate his exit.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

It was recently reported that Volendam centre-back Xavier Mbuyamba, who is a long-time Rangers transfer target, is holding talks with new teams ahead of a possible transfer, as his contract is due to expire at the end of the season.

This means that the Dutch colossus is due to be available for either a cut-price fee this month or on a free transfer in the summer window, which is a situation that the Gers should take advantage of now to sign him in the January window.

Mbuyamba, who was described as a set-piece “threat” by RangersJournal’s Kai Watson, has only started six games in the Eredivisie this season because of his contractual situation and desire to leave, but his form as a regular in previous campaigns suggests that he could be an excellent addition to the squad.

The 24-year-old star scored five goals in 34 second division outings, backing up Watson’s praise of his set-piece threat, in the 2024/25 campaign, per Sofascore, winning 64% of his ground duels and 61% of his aerial duels.

Mbuyamba, who also scored five goals in 28 Eredivisie games in the 2022/23 campaign, only made one error that led to a goal in those 34 matches, which suggests that he would not be as much of a liability defensively as Djiga has been.

Rangers CB options if Mbuyamba signs

Right CB

Left CB

John Souttar

Emmanuel Fernandez

Xavier Mbuyamba

Derek Cornelius

James Tavernier

Clinton Nsiala

Dujon Sterling

N/A

Nasser Djiga

N/A

As you can see in the table above, Rohl would have five options to play in the right-sided centre-back position if the Dutchman joins from Volendam, six if you add right-footed Fernandez to that side of the table.

Subscribe for Rangers transfer insight and squad analysis Crave clearer context on Rangers’ transfer moves? Subscribing to the newsletter delivers focused analysis of signings, loans and defensive options, explaining how each change reshapes the squad and what it means for selection.

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

This suggests that the “dominant”, as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, defender’s arrival at Ibrox would provide the German boss with enough options to allow Djiga to be sent back to Wolves.

Rohl would have at least two senior and recognised centre-backs in each position, with Souttar and Mbuyamba on the right and Fernandez and Cornelius on the left, ahead of Djiga for the second half of the season, whilst James Tavernier, Dujon Sterling, and Clinton Nsiala can also be used.

This means that there would be no need to keep the Wolves loanee at Ibrox if there is a chance to send him back to England, which is why the Gers should sign Mbuyamba to allow them to open talks with the Premier League side to cut the flop’s loan short.

Rohl can move on from Curtis by unleashing Rangers teen who gets "bums off seats"

Danny Rohl could ruthlessly move on from Findlay Curtis by unleashing Rangers teen in the second half of the season.

1 ByDan Emery