Three Players Russell Martin Could Sign for Rangers
Kai Watson 
Having been named as the new Rangers manager, Russell Martin will now look to rebuild his squad over the summer as he aims to challenge Celtic in the Scottish Premiership.
With Celtic already odds-on with the betting sites for next season's title, Martin knows that he needs to make some shrewd moves in the transfer market.
Our resident Scottish football expert, Kai Watson, takes a closer look at three players Russel Martin should be taking a closer look at.
Russell Martin has a history of signing players from previous clubs which has meant the British media has already made plenty of links. Some of them have seemingly been realistic where others like Flynn Downes (purchased last season for around £15m) seem out of reach.
Here’s the history of players Martin has taken to clubs;
Andy Fisher (GK) – Bought for MK Dons then taken to Swansea
Harry Darling (CB) - Bought for MK Dons then taken to Swansea
Flynn Downes (CM) – Bought for Swansea then taken to Southampton (via West Ham)
Nathan Wood (CB) - Bought for Swansea then taken to Southampton
Ryan Manning (LB) – Bought from Swansea for Southampton
He’s also shown a willingness to buy domestic players, which will excite some Rangers fans and fill others with fear. Almost every successful Rangers side has had a Scottish core and that is something that this current rangers team lacks.
Lyall Cameron has already signed a pre-contract and Josh Mulligan, also of Dundee, is rumoured to be doing the same. They would add to Connor Barron, Findlay Curtis, Robbie Fraser, Liam Kelly, Bailey Rice and John Souttar as the Scottish contingent in the team which, currently, is mostly made up of youth players.
That may shape the framework of what the recruitment will be under Martin, or it may not, but these three potential are based off players previously worked with and players previously linked to both Martin and Rangers.
Harry Toffolo
The 29-year-old left back was recently released by Nottingham Forest and reports have linked him with a move to Rangers. He only made seven total appearances last season as he fell out of favour having played 29 the season before.
He was signed when Forest were promoted to the Premier League after an incredibly impressive season for Huddersfield in the Championship. In 45 appearances he scored six goals and had eight assists. He never managed to replicate that attacking output when stepping up a level but that’s difficult to do when battling against relegation
That being said, he’s a solid defender and very athletic so offers a lot on both ends not just on the attacking side. I looked at his data from the 23/24 season and he ranks well in most offensive and defensive areas when compared to other left backs in the English Premier League. The areas where he ranks the highest are;
- Cross Accuracy %
- Goals
- Successful Defensive Actions P90
- Sliding Tackles P90
- Aerial Duels Won%
- Interceptions P90
- Key Passes P90
This highlights the good work that he can do on both ends of this pitch and this Rangers squads really needs some added athleticism. It would also be good for the development of Jefte to have a competitor that’s played against some of the best players in the world and can help him out with his defensive deficiencies.
He’s available on a free right now and could be a smart signing to start off Russell Martin’s time in charge.
Harry Darling
Darling’s contract is expiring and he would also be available on a free transfer. Martin has already signed him twice in his career, taking him to MK Dons from Cambridge and then to Swansea when he moved to Wales. The 25-year-old centre back was one of the standouts in his position in the Championship last season.
In 39 Championship appearances he scored five goals and got three assists, really impressive numbers for a centre back but he is a massive threat further up the pitch. He’s a progressive, modern day centre back that’s a really strong passer of the ball and can carry it up the pitch. The areas where he ranked the highest last season were;
- Passes P90
- Through Passes P90
- Pass Accuracy %
- Passes to Final Third P90
- Interceptions P90
- Accurate Progressive Pass %
The data absolutely backs up how good he is with the ball at his feet which is probably why Martin has already bought him twice so far in his managerial career. In a team that wants to dominate the possession and control the ball you need centre backs who can take the ball and progress it both through passes and driving with the ball.
Harry Darling offers exactly what Martin wants but it may come down to whether he thinks he’s ready/good enough for Rangers.
Dor Turgeman
This is one I personally would be very excited about. I’ve been tracking the 21-year-old Israeli striker since the U20 World Cup in 2023. Since then he’s become a key player for Maccabi Tel Aviv and a full Israel international.
It looks likely that Cyriel Dessers will leave Rangers this summer and that would only leave Danilo and Hamza Igamane as senior strikers at the club. That means reinforcement will be needed and Turgeman is one of the best young strikers available on the market as a decent cost. A bid of around €4m has apparently already been rejected with Maccabi Tel Aviv reportedly looking for €6m so hopefully the clubs can meet somewhere in the middle.
Turgeman is a strong ball carrier with great feet inside and outside of the box. Inside the box he’s a great finisher on both feet and can hold/link-up the play really well. He has everything that a striker needs, can play up top on his own or with a strike partner. He’s the type of player that won’t be within Rangers budget for long so they’ll need to act now to make sure they can get him in the door.
These are the areas he excelled in domestically last season;
- Goals
- xG
- xG P90
- Goals P90
- Shots
- Non-Penalty Goals
- Goal Conversion %
- Touches in Box P90
Like I said, everything you need/want in a striker he displayed last season in Israel and is definitely ready for the next step in his career, I really hope that is at Rangers.
There have been reports that all three players could be of interest to Rangers and Russell Martin, hopefully soon the club starts their summer business to give a better idea of what the recruitment may look like.
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