Scottish Premiership giants Rangers made a move to bring Zamelek forward Mostafa Mohamed to Ibrox before Florian Kamberi signed on loan from Hibs.
Steven Gerrard made an approach to sign £3 million forward Mostafa Mohamed during the January transfer window, the Egyptian’s former Zamalek coach Milutin Stredojevic has admitted to the Daily Record.
The fact that Rangers only made their move for Florian Kamberi on deadline day, landing the Swiss centre-forward on loan from Hibernian until the end of the campaign, doesn’t exactly suggest that he was the number one target.
The Glasgow giants were linked with a host of forwards’ before Kamberi’s last-gasp arrival with Mohamed just one of those.
A technically gifted forward who idolises Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino, the 22-year-old seemingly caught the eye after inspiring his side to Egyptian Cup glory during a loan spell at El Gaish last season.
Since returning to Zamalek, Mohamed has produced eight goals and a trio of assists with his price-tag rising to £3 million as a result. And, according to a man who worked closely with the 22-year-old at Zamalek, Rangers’ interest was more than just idle paper talk.
“Steven Gerrard called me personally to ask about Mostafa Mohamed. He wanted to know what he was like as a player and at training,” Stredojevic claims.
“But Zamalek made it very difficult for the transfer to go through because they don’t want to looked at as a selling club. So the transfer never happened, but Steven Gerrard was very keen indeed for the move to go through.
“Mostafa is a player with a bright future. He is an incredible talent who will of course go to Europe one day soon.”
It is far from certain that Rangers will try to sign Kamberi permanently in the summer while it looks increasingly likely that Alfredo Morelos’s immediate future lies away from Ibrox. Jermain Defoe, will turn 38 later this year and even Mr Evergreen cannot go on forever.
So Gerrard might come calling for Mohamed again sooner rather than later.
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