Rangers begin work on Tavernier replacement who’s “similar to Rommens”

James Tavernier announced earlier this week that he is calling curtains on his time at Glasgow Rangers when his contract expires at the end of this season.

The veteran full-back’s deal is set to expire at the end of June and he will be looking to find a new club for the first time since he left Wigan to move to Ibrox in the summer of 2015.

Since joining from the Latics, Tavernier has racked up 144 goals and 148 assists in 562 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish Premiership giants.

The Rangers captain has won one league title with the club, which was in the 2020/21 campaign under Steven Gerrard, but he still has the chance to double that tally before the end of the current season.

Hearts are one point ahead with five matches left to play and Tavernier could make lifting the Premiership title his last ever action as a player at Ibrox.

Rangers working on deal to sign James Tavernier replacement

Whilst there are still five games left to play and a title to fight for, there is already work going on behind the scenes to replace the captain in the off-season.

Tavernier has scored 14 goals and provided six assists in 49 appearances in all competitions this season, and the Gers need to find a player to take his place in the XI next term.

According to TEAMtalk, Glasgow Rangers have identified Hammarby right-back Hampus Skoglund as one of their number one targets to replace Tavernier in the summer transfer window.

The report claims that work is already underway to bring the full-back to Ibrox because they have been sending scouts to watch him in action for several months.

It adds that there is interest from a host of European clubs ahead of the summer and bids are expected to be made for the Swedish defender, which means that there could be serious competition for his signature.

However, TEAMtalk does not reveal how much Hammarby are set to demand for Skoglund or how much Rangers would be willing to pay to bring him to Glasgow.

How Skoglund could be the perfect Tavernier replacement for Rangers

The Gers must now push to secure a deal to sign the Allsvenskan star this summer because he could be the perfect replacement for Tavernier at Ibrox.

Writer Kai Watson recently claimed that Skoglund is “similar to (Tuur) Rommens“, which is high praise after the Belgian’s start to life at Rangers, and his form for Hammarby last year backs that claim up.

The 22-year-old star provided defensive tenacity and strength to go along with his technical reliability and creativity from a right-back position in the 2025 Allsvenskan, which shows that he is a complete full-back.

This season, Rommens is averaging 2.8 tackles and interceptions per game and has created four ‘big chances’ in six Premiership appearances for Rangers since signing from Westerlo for £3m in January, proving himself to be effective at both ends of the pitch.

Skoglund is 22, making him a young player like Rommens, 23, and is 12 years younger than Tavernier, which means that he has time on his side to grow into the role and become the long-term right-back option for Danny Rohl.

His creative numbers in the 2025 Allsvenskan show that he can replace the creativity that the captain offers Rangers, as he recorded as many assists as Tavernier has managed in the Premiership this term.

Skoglund may not be a prolific scorer from right-back, with no senior goals to date, but Tavernier has only scored four non-penalty goals in the league and Rohl could find another player to take spot-kicks for the team to make up for that loss of goalscoring threat.

The Hammarby star is a strong and reliable defender, who could offer more solidity out of possession, whilst still being a creative outlet down the flank, which is why he could be the perfect signing to replace the skipper this summer.

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