Rangers want to re-sign former defender David Bates, according to a report, with Premier League side Brentford also said to be tracking the ex-Ger.
Bates, who left Rangers in 2018 to sign for German giants Hamburg, has one year left on his deal with HSV but looks to be completely out of the picture after spending the last two seasons out on loan from the Gers’ partner club.
A stint at Sheffield Wednesday was a write-off after injuries meant he barely played before he got back to regular action with Belgian side Cercle Brugges last season.
According to French outlet Homme du Match, the Gers are considering bringing him back to Ibrox – although it seems incredibly unlikely given the wealth of options available to Steven Gerrard at centre-back.
Connor Goldson, Fil Helander, Leon Balogun, Niko Katic and Jack Simpson are all competing for starting places in the side so a return for Bates wouldn’t really make much sense.
Given all of those are of a higher quality than the former Raith Rovers defender, it simply wouldn’t make sense to bring him back to the club.
A move to Brentford – or more likely Brentford B – could be a bit more plausible but after just sending over £10million to Celtic for Kris Ajer, suddenly bringing in someone who couldn’t get a game in the German second tier seems fanciful.
Returning to Scotland could be on the cards for Bates though if his Hamburg future is as bleak as it appears – but there is more chance of him running out at Ibrox as an opposition player this season than there is of him coming out of the home dressing room and making his way through the warren of corridors inside the iconic main stand at Ibrox.
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