Rangers Deadline Day Drama: Kelsy Joins and Bouanani Chase Intensifies

What was supposed to be a tidy, controlled finish to Rangers’ window has turned into a full‑scale late scramble. Derek McInnes thought Kevin Kelsy would be the final piece. He was wrong.

Kelsy deal finally over the line

The big one is done. Kevin Kelsy is a Rangers player.

The Venezuelan striker, brought in to replace the stricken Youssef Chermiti after his ACL injury against Hibs, has completed his move from Portland Timbers in a deal worth around £9.5 million plus add‑ons. It’s a huge sale for the MLS club and a serious outlay from Ibrox.

The transfer has been brewing for days, with Kelsy already in Europe and Rangers fans anxiously waiting on the official word. MLS reporter Tom Bogert moved to calm any nerves, confirming the agreement and revealing the late delay centred on the player’s share of the fee. That hurdle is now cleared. The deal is done, the money agreed, the replacement for Chermiti secured.

For McInnes, it solves the most pressing problem in his squad. For Rangers, it’s a statement that this window is not about trimming and treading water.

Bouanani on the brink

Just when it looked like Kelsy would close the book, another storyline has burst into life.

Rangers are pushing hard to bring in Badredine Bouanani from Stuttgart on loan, with an option to buy that is understood to sit at around €18 million. That figure would represent a massive potential commitment and could even grow into a Scottish record fee if activated.

The Algerian winger is already in Scotland and undergoing his medical. Time is tight, the Scottish window shuts at 5pm on Thursday, but the groundwork is done. The deal now needs signatures and clearance.

Bouanani is no stranger to Ibrox. The 21‑year‑old, then at Nice, scored in that bruising 4-1 Europa League win over Philippe Clement’s Rangers in 2024. He has since moved to Stuttgart, but this proposed switch would give Rangers the chance to turn a loan into a long‑term attacking pillar.

McInnes hinted after the win over Falkirk that there might be “one other little thing” to come once he spoke to sporting director Jim Gillespie. That “little thing” looks very much like a major attacking addition.

Bajraktarevic in the frame

Bouanani might not be the only winger on the radar.

Rangers have also been in talks over Esmir Bajraktarevic, the 21‑year‑old US‑born Bosnian international currently at PSV. He only joined the Dutch side from New England Revolution in January 2025 and is under contract until 2029, but he is on Rangers’ list as a live option for deadline day.

The club’s recruitment department, with Dan Purdy heavily involved, have done significant homework on the player. Local reports in the Netherlands, including from Rik Elfrink, suggest Bajraktarevic “could still leave” PSV, though Rangers are not alone in tracking him and any move would have to accelerate quickly.

If Bouanani is the headline, Bajraktarevic is the insurance policy – and possibly the wildcard.

No way back for Cerny

One name can now be scored off the board.

Vaclav Cerny will not be returning to Ibrox. The Czech winger, previously linked with another spell at Rangers, is not expected to complete a move from Besiktas.

His salary demands and his preference to remain in Turkey, where he benefits from favourable tax conditions, have effectively shut the door. With that, McInnes continues to look elsewhere to strengthen his wide areas.

Outgoing traffic: Aasgaard leads the exodus

While the focus has been on attacking reinforcements, there has been a steady stream of departures.

Thelo Aasgaard has joined Anderlecht on loan with a €6 million purchase clause, following Connor Barron and Lyall Cameron out of the first‑team picture. Aasgaard, who had also attracted interest from Bodo/Glimt, will spend the season in Belgium, where he links up with former Rangers teammate Oliver Antman, another summer exit.

Barron has sealed a move to Middlesbrough, while Cameron has joined Dundee United on loan for the campaign. Those three departures clear valuable space in McInnes’ squad and ease the wage bill just as the club pushes for late attacking quality.

Clinton Nsiala is expected to follow. The defender is set for a loan move to Pafos in Cyprus, where he would join up with former Brazil and Chelsea defender David Luiz. Bursaspor have also shown interest, but Pafos is currently the likeliest destination.

Ross McCausland is available for loan as well, with Bursaspor again among the suitors, and John Souttar could yet leave before the deadline. MLS sides have asked the question, and several Scottish Premiership clubs are monitoring the Scotland international as a possible loan signing.

In goal, Mason Munn is another player Rangers are ready to send out. The Northern Irish keeper has slipped down the pecking order behind new signing Ivor Pandur, Liam Kelly and teenager Rydnn McGuire. After underwhelming spells at Dunfermline and Forfar last season, a fresh temporary move is being lined up to finally secure him regular senior minutes.

Miovski and Cifuentes stay put

Not every door is opening.

Bojan Miovski, once seemingly on the brink of a move away, now looks increasingly likely to stay at Rangers. Interest from Feyenoord, LASK and Genclerbirligi has faded, and unless a late bid arrives from Greece or another league with a longer window, the striker will remain part of McInnes’ plans beyond the deadline.

Jose Cifuentes is also staying, at least until January. The midfielder is still recovering from surgery after his loan spell with Toronto FC and is not expected to move before this window shuts. His future can wait; his rehab cannot.

Raskin saga twists again – and settles

Nicolas Raskin’s situation has been one of the most dramatic subplots of the Rangers summer. It now looks set to end with a familiar conclusion: the Belgian staying at Ibrox.

Rangers have rejected a €12 million offer from Besiktas after previously pulling out of a proposed loan with an option to buy. The Turkish club had pushed hard to land the midfielder, but the latest proposal has been knocked back and the door, for now, is closed.

Raskin has already returned to the team, featuring against Falkirk after being left out of the squads for Jablonec and Aberdeen. McInnes has been clear throughout that he would happily keep him, praising his attitude in training and his response since coming back from the World Cup.

The message from the manager was simple: until an offer arrived that the club genuinely had to consider, Raskin had to knuckle down and work. He has done exactly that, and with the Besiktas bid turned away, he now looks set to continue as a key part of McInnes’ midfield.

Final hours at Ibrox

The landscape at Rangers has shifted sharply from the manager’s early assumption that Kelsy would be the final incoming deal.

Kelsy is in the building, Portland Timbers have their £9.5m plus add‑ons, and the centre‑forward gap left by Chermiti’s injury has been plugged. Bouanani is closing in on a loan move that carries an eye‑catching €18m purchase option. Bajraktarevic remains on the radar as Rangers weigh up one last attacking swing.

At the same time, the club is working the phones to move on those who sit outside McInnes’ immediate plans, trimming and reshaping a squad that suddenly looks far more fluid than it did a few days ago.

The clock stops at 5pm on Thursday. For a window that threatened to fizzle out quietly, Rangers have turned the volume right up. The only question now is whether they can land that final winger to match the ambition of a deal that has already brought Kevin Kelsy to Ibrox.