Why Rangers must sign £5m alongside Cerny to strengthen their right flank

Glasgow Rangers have done plenty of business for Derek McInnes since the summer transfer window officially opened for business last month.

The defence has been bolstered by the signings of Ivor Pandur, Ben Godfrey, and Ross McCrorie, whilst Cammy Devlin and Dan Neil have also been brought in to strengthen the midfield.

Lawrence Shankland, signed before McInnes arrived, is the only natural attacker who has been added to the squad, though, and the objective for the rest of the window should be to raise the ceiling of the forward line.

One attacking player who has emerged as a potential signing for the Scottish Premiership giants this summer is Vaclav Cerny, who currently plays for Besiktas.

The latest on Rangers’ pursuit of Vaclav Cerny

The Light Blues had the Czechia international on loan from Wolfsburg in the 2024/25 campaign with Philippe Clement and then Barry Ferguson in charge, and he caught the eye with his performances in Glasgow.

Cerny racked up 18 goals and six assists in the Premiership and Europa League combined, and ranked highly among his positional peers in a host of key attacking metrics in the top-flight.

Now, the Gers are hoping to bring the forward back to Ibrox for a second spell. It was claimed last week that the club are preparing a new offer to sign him from Besiktas, having already seen an offer of £5m turned down by the Turkish giants.

Rangers are hopeful of agreeing a deal of less than £8.5m to sign the former Wolfsburg forward to join their attack, replacing Andreas Skov Olsen after his loan expired.

McInnes does not currently have any naturally left-footed attacking players, aside from Bojan Miovski, and the return of Cerny would provide him with a different profile of attacker in the wide areas, to keep opponents guessing.

Who Rangers could sign alongside Cerny

Whilst the club are looking at a deal to bring the Czechia star back to Ibrox, they are also eyeing up a player who would be a dream partner for the winger down the right flank.

Journalist Alan Nixon, via his Patreon, reports that Glasgow Rangers are one of the clubs interested in a deal to sign Ryan Alebiosu from Blackburn Rovers this summer.

The reporter claims that Premier League side Brentford and the Gers both sent scouts to Blackburn’s friendly with Barnsley in the hope of watching him play, but he did not feature for the Championship outfit.

Despite not being able to watch him play, Nixon reveals that Rangers and Brentford are both expected to make moves for the right-back before the end of the window.

Alebiosu, who has previously been touted at a fee of £5m, would be a terrific signing to pair with Cerny down the wing, with him playing at right-back behind the left-footed star as a right winger.

The Nigeria international is an attack-minded full-back who would provide a constant threat on the overlap down the right flank, as evidenced by his 12 ‘big chances’ created in the Championship last season.

Rangers, of course, have already signed one right-back from the English Championship, McCrorie, but Alebiosu was far more exciting as an attacking threat than the Scottish defender was at that level.

The £5m-rated star created five more ‘big chances’ and racked up 3.41 more xA for his teammates in the division, whilst they both played 39 times for their respective clubs.

Alebiosu also has prior experience in the Premiership on loan with St Mirren in the 2024/25 campaign, creating two ‘big chances’ in 13 appearances in the league, whilst he also completed an eye-catching 1.2 dribbles per game.

The Nigerian star, who was described as “powerful” by analyst Kai Watson, would be the perfect partner for Cerny down the right because his ability to consistently create chances on the overlap means that he will constantly draw attention from defenders.

That attention will provide Cerny with more room to work with and allow him to cut inside onto his favoured left foot from the right, either shooting or crossing himself, or disguising a pass back to Alebiosu to cross the ball.

There is plenty of work left to do, though, as the club are yet to agree deals with Besiktas or Blackburn, and doing so should be the next step for them this summer.