Rangers are concerned that the lack of a work permit could pose a problem in their attempts to sign Juan Alegria from FC Honka, as reported by the Daily Record.
A young, powerful Colombian striker from Finnish football? Where have we heard that before?
No one in Glasgow even knew his name this time last week but, suddenly, everyone on the blue half of the city is talking about an 18-year-old centre-forward who could be about to follow in Alfredo Morelos’s footsteps.
Alegria’s father has already told El Diario that a move to Ibrox is ’90 per cent’ done. The player himself claimed 24 hours later that he is on the verge of joining ‘the best (team) in Scotland’.
There is still work to be done before Alegria is posing for photos outside of Ibrox, however.
The Daily Record points out that, with new, post-Brexit regulations coming in after the turn of the year, Rangers have a few concerns.
The Scottish Premiership leaders believe that Alegria, a teenager who is yet to make a single appearance for the Colombian national team, will be denied the requisite work permit in order to swap Scandinavia for Scotland.
That will not stop Rangers from trying to get the deal done, however.
Speaking after a 2-0 Europa League victory away to Lech Poznan on Thursday night – a result which means Rangers have now played 26 games without defeat this season – Gerrard broke his silence on the Alegria situation.
“We are well aware of the player and his talent. We are always looking to recruit right through the club,” he told the Glasgow Times.
With everything out in the open already, there really was no point in Gerrard trying to play down the rumours at this stage.
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