Rangers could see £8m bid accepted to sign new striker

As the curtain came down on the 2025/26 season, questions were being asked about Danny Rohl‘s future at Rangers.

His time at Ibrox has been far better than Russell Martin’s. Credit to the German for engineering a turnaround that even saw them in the Premiership title race in the first place.

Yet, the way in which the Gers fell away when it really mattered is a huge concern. While it’s difficult to suggest they bottled it, they did end up wilting under the pressure, failing to sustain a challenge to Hearts and their rivals across the city.

The acquisition of Lawrence Shankland will no doubt boost their chances of finally reclaiming the Premiership title but they must not stop there in their bid to improve.

Rangers ramping up transfer plans

It would appear as though the Gers are finally looking at signing a crop of established players in Scotland’s top-flight with the arrival of Shankland potentially set to be followed by the likes of Luke Graham and Elliot Watt.

Reports from the back end of last month suggested that Rangers were firmly in the race to secure the Dundee defender’s signature, even opening talks with the player’s camp to understand his current situation.

A deal for Watt, however, has not really progressed beyond general interest in the player. Instead, they have looked more closely at Sunderland’s Dan Neil in a bid to improve the midfield.

Midfield and defence are not the only priorities for the Gers who despite the arrival of Shankland, are looking at further firepower.

That’s according to TEAMtalk, who report that Rangers are one of several teams to have shown interest in signing Leeds United’s Joel Piroe.

Clubs from England’s second tier in the shape of Middlesbrough and Birmingham City are also monitoring the Dutch forward but he will cost a pretty penny.

Despite not playing for Leeds in the Premier League, they are demanding a fee of £8m-£10m to let him go. That may well be prohibitive for Rangers but they may well try their luck.

After all, this is a player who could be devastating in the Premiership.

Why Piroe is bad news for Shankland

In signing Shankland, Rangers are ready to make a genuine push to win the league. This is the best striker in the SPFL and he has been for some time now.

Last term, the Scot bagged as many as 20 goals in 34 outings. It was an impresive return to form after scoring just nine times in 2024/25 but prior to that, he had a history with scoring on a regular basis.

Indeed, back in 2023/24, the 30-year-old rattled the back of the net on as many as 31 occasions. Scottish football simply hasn’t seen many player as devastating as this in the last few years.

It’s a seriously good signing and one that was always destined to happen. The striker is a Gers fan.

Yet, Piroe’s prospective arrival would not be good news for the new signing. He may not be as prolific on paper but this is a player who would surely take to Scottish football like a duck to water and possibly even represent an upgrade on Shankland.

The Dutchman only scored once in 21 games for Leeds in 2025/26 but he is a much better player than that, particularly down a level. Indeed, like Shankland north of the border, Piroe has been one of the best players in the league, just in England’s second tier instead.

His Premier League adventure was not ideal but this is a player who has a history of scoring regular goals and at a similar level, perhaps even at a better level than the SPFL.

Just over a year ago, he had been crowned the league’s Golden Boot winner after a fruitful promotion-winning season in which he netted 19 times.

If Rangers do indeed sign a player with that clinical nature in front of goal and indeed pay a pretty penny to secure his services, they would not be signing him to sit on the bench.

There is a possibility that Shankland and Piroe could play as a pairing. The latter has played in a two up top formation for Leeds this season but that isn’t really Rohl’s style.

Based on the signing of Hearts’ talisman, it would perhaps be a tad strange to spend so much on another centre forward but if they could narrow the price down, he’d be a phenomenal pick up.

With both of them in tow, Rangers would have a brilliant chance of beating Celtic and Hears to the title next term.