Did Gerrard hint at Fabio Cardoso’s Rangers exit when discussing transfer plans?

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Fabio Cardoso is the latest player to bid farewell to Ibrox with Scottish Premiership giants Rangers terminating his contract.

Steven Gerrard hasn’t been messing about in the transfer market this summer. Rangers’ new signings are into the double figures and the 38-year-old has not been wary of getting rid of players he doesn’t fancy either.

Eduardo Herrera, Jason Holt, Michael O’Halloran, Bruno Alves and Harry Forrester have already gone with the likes of Lee Hodson and Greg Docherty expected to bid farewell to Ibrox too before the transfer window slams shut.

And now Fabio Cardoso has become the latest victim of Gerrard’s Ibrox cull. According to the club’s official website, the 24-year-old defender has had his contract terminated, just one year after he arrived last summer for £1.2 million from Vitoria Guimaraes.

Cardoso hadn’t played a single minute of Rangers’ three Europa League qualifiers under Gerrard, meanwhile, and was left out of the squad for the clash with Macedonian minnows Shkupi. The writing was clearly on the wall, particularly after Gerrard said this to the BBC;

“You can see quite clearly that we need a centre-back so that is definitely an area that we are trying to add in. Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later.”

Rangers missed out on signing Manchester City youngster Kean Bryan but have reinforced their defence with both Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic. They can also call upon Ross McCrorie and Aiden White if required.

So with Cardoso slipping down the pecking order and with another defender targeted, his sudden exit comes as little surprise.