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It is no secret that Glasgow Rangers are going to sign a new right-back before the summer transfer window slams shut at the start of September.
James Tavernier will officially depart from Ibrox upon the expiry of his contract at the end of June, becoming a free agent, and his exit will leave a big hole to fill in the right-back department.
After ten years as the first-choice right-back for the Scottish Premiership giants, the English defender will not be an easy player for the club to replace this summer.
One of the targets being eyed by the Light Blues is reportedly Westerlo right-back Bryan Reynolds, who is valued at more than £4m by the Belgian outfit.
The USA international, who did not make the squad for the World Cup, is said to be excited about the prospect of a move to Ibrox and is interested in completing a move to Glasgow.
Rangers submit offer to sign Championship defender
Reynolds is not the only right-back on the club’s shortlist of options to replace Tavernier, who scored 144 goals and provided 148 assists in 565 matches in all competitions in Scotland.
Whilst Danny Rohl’s future is up in the air amid links to Austrian side RB Salzburg, there is still work going on in the background to improve the German’s squad.
According to Soccernet, Glasgow Rangers are pursuing a deal to sign Blackburn Rovers right-back Ryan Alebiosu as a potential replacement for Tavernier, and as an alternative to Reynolds.
The report goes as far as to claim that the Light Blues have offered a fee of around £5m to sign the Nigeria international in the summer transfer window.
It has already been reported earlier this week that the Gers are expected to agree personal terms with the defender, who is open to moving on from Ewood Park this summer.
Now, it is a waiting game to see whether or not the English Championship side will accept this £5m offer from the Scottish giants for Tony Mowbray’s star full-back.
Why Rangers should sign Ryan Alebiosu over Bryan Reynolds
Instead of pressing ahead with a deal to sign Reynolds for around £4m, the Gers should place all of their focus on getting this reported deal for Alebiosu over the line in the coming weeks.
The Nigerian star’s performances for Blackburn in the 2025/26 campaign suggest that he would be an even better addition to the squad at Ibrox and is more suited to being a replacement for Tavernier.
As aforementioned, the Rangers captain was an assist-machine for the club throughout his time in Glasgow, and Alebiosu has the potential to provide creativity on a regular basis from a right-back position.
|
25/26 season |
Reynolds (Pro League) |
Alebiosu (Championship) |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
39 |
39 |
|
Big chances created |
5 |
12 |
|
shah |
4.35 |
6.38 |
|
Assists |
5 |
5 |
|
Successful crosses per game |
0.6 |
1.1 |
|
Possession lost per game |
14.2x |
12.9x |
The Blackburn star, who was described as “powerful” by analyst Kai Watson, has the engine and the quality to get up and down the pitch to create chances for his teammates week-in-week-out.
He created more than twice as many ‘big chances’ as Reynolds did at league level in the 2025/26 campaign, whilst playing the same number of games, which suggests that the Nigerian star would be far more suited to replacing Tavernier’s creativity.
Alebiosu would be a better addition for the role that Rangers need to fill in their team at right-back, given the assist numbers that the captain put up in that position for so long, as Reynolds is not as creative as the £5m-rated star.
Neither full-back target has the goal record to suggest that they can replace Tavernier’s goals, but Rangers do not need a complete like-for-like replacement, as they can find goals from elsewhere on the pitch.
From a defensive perspective, Alebiosu also made more tackles per game (1.7) than the American (1.4) at league level and was dribbled past fewer times per match (0.4) than Reynolds (0.5), which suggests that he also has more to offer the Gers as a defender.
He won 54% of his ground duels in the Championship for Blackburn, showing strength in his tackles, whilst Reynolds only won 50% of his battles on the ground in the Pro League for Westerlo.
Therefore, the Gers could secure an even better signing than Reynolds by swooping for the Rovers star this summer, as he seems more likely to be a success at Ibrox with his qualities on and off the ball in a right-back position.
