Lechia Gdank’s Mateusz Zukowski had offers to stay in Poland but the defender always preferred a move to Scottish Premiership champions Rangers, as reported by Wyborcza.
With 12 hours of the January transfer window remaining, Rangers are set to bring in another new face to join James Sands and Manchester United loanee Amad Diallo at Ibrox.
Zukowski, a Poland U21 international, will become Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s third signing since replacing Steven Gerrard at the Glasgow giants.
A versatile, attack-minded right-back who can also play on the left, Zukowski is one of the most exciting, up-and-coming talents in the Ekstraklasa.
It appears that Rangers view the 20-year-old as a ready-made replacement for Nathan Patterson.
Patterson moved south of the border to Everton three weeks ago, leaving captain James Tavernier short of competition on the right-hand side.
Zukowski’s arrival, in theory, will allow Van Bronckhorst to rest and rotate his talismanic skipper. Something that could prove very useful indeed with the Europa League set to kick off again in February.
Will Mateusz Zukowski replace Nathan Patterson at Rangers?
Wyborcza claims that Zukowski, who’s scored twice in 18 league games this season, was also a target for Slask Wroclaw and reigning Ekstraklasa champions Legia Warsaw.
The defender’s camp were always prioritising the foreign option, however, with Rangers offering him the opportunity to make a name for himself in front of 50,000 fired-up supporters at one of the most historic and best-supported clubs in the whole of Europe.
The report adds that Zukowski was in Scotland this weekend for a medical with the Premiership leaders.
It is not certain, at this stage, how much Rangers will pay. But Zukowski will hardly break the bank, his Lechia Gdansk contract expiring in July.
How much will Zukowski cost?
“From the beginning, I said that, for his development, it would be the best solution if he stayed at Lechia for the next year and a half,” sighs a clearly frustrated head coach Tomasz Kaczmarek.
“During this time, we would definitely help him develop so that he’d become a player ready for the next challenge. I know that Mateusz is of the same opinion. But, unfortunately, there are many other factors influencing this decision.
“I understand that football is a very big business and the most money is earned from transfers. But, in my opinion, there are important things.
“Ultimately, the player must be aware that he has only one career. He alone is fully responsible for it. He must know that any wrong decision at this age could cost him his entire future.”
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