Manager reacts after hearing Rangers want 26-year-old goalkeeper at Ibrox

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Rangers have been linked with bringing Craig MacGillivray to Ibrox.

Rangers have been linked with signing goalkeeper Craig McGillivray – and Portsmouth boss Kenny Jackett has told The News that the club don’t intend to sell.

The Gers already have a first-choice goalkeeper in Allan McGregor, and despite his advancing years, he has now signed a new contract to stay at Ibrox.

However, Wes Foderingham is out of contract at the end of the season, Jak Alniwck is likely to elave permanently, Andy Firth is just a third-choice stopper and Robby McCrorie may not be ready to be second choice.

Steven Gerrard may therefore need to focus on signing a new goalkeeper in January or even at the end of the season, and a number of options has been linked.

The latest was MacGillivray, as The Scottish Sun reported earlier this month that Rangers want to bring him to Ibrox in the January transfer window.

The 26-year-old had barely played in the Football League before heading to Portsmouth in 2018, but he became their first choice last season, helping Pompey reach the playoffs.

In August, MacGillivray was called up by Scotland, and whilst he’s yet to win his first cap, a move to Rangers could just help him move closer to that goal.

Out of contract in 2021, Pompey are protected from losing him for free, and boss Jackett has now suggested that selling MacGillivray isn’t in the plans, as Portsmouth want to strengthen rather than lose players – and until bids are on the table, there’s no decision to make on the Rangers target.

“Like everyone else, we will be trying to add and not take away,” said Jackett. “We haven’t had any bids and we have really got to get our head down and see if we can stay in touch and in contention. Then after that, we’ve got to do better and push our way through. That is still our ambition to be able to do that.”

“It’s all about the collective rather than individual players. If there are any bids then we will deal with them then. But, at the moment, it’s not something we are anticipating or encouraging,” he added.