Red Star Belgrade star Mirko Ivanic could be handed a new contract and a sizeable pay rise after Scottish Premiership champions Rangers failed to get a £3 million deal over the line, as reported by Informer.
Is there a more maddening player in Steven Gerrard’s squad than Ianis Hagi?
Every now then, you’ll see a little flicker of Gheorghe in Hagi Jr; a clever little backheel, a defence-splitting through ball. Seconds later, he’ll leave you tearing your hair out by overhitting the simplest of sideways passes.
Seldom has a player flitted from the brilliant to the baffling quite like Ianis Hagi.
If only the Trichotillomania-inducing Romanian had Mirko Ivanic’s end product.
Would Ivanic have been an upgrade on Hagi at Rangers?
According to Serbian publication Mozzartsport, Rangers made a £3 million offer for the 15-cap Montenegro international in August.
In all competitions last season, Ivanic produced 20 goals and 16 assists from his favoured number ten role – more put together than Hagi has managed in nearly two years at Ibrox.
It was reported that Red Star might have had no choice but to accept Rangers’ offer, too, with Ivanic entering the final 12 months of his contract.
Now that the window has closed – for most of Europe at least – the Serbian Super Lig champions will now turn their attention to ensuring arguably the finest player in the country does not leave on a free transfer.
Sign an extension and his weekly-wage will soar to £10,000-a-week – less than he’d earn at Rangers but a sizeable increase on his current pay packet.
“I am extremely glad for that guy (Ivanic), since he survived a difficult period at Red Star when he was carrying the burden of being one of the highest-paid players in our history,” director Zvezdan Terzic told Espreso earlier in the year.
“I am extremely glad for him, he showed that he is top-class. He can easily play for teams of the highest calibre, such as AC Milan.”
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