£3.5m star will say goodbye to Ibrox if Rangers sign Elijah Just

Glasgow Rangers head coach Derek McInnes has not wasted any time in adding to his first-team squad in the summer transfer window since taking on the role.

The Scottish boss took over from Danny Rohl after the German had already brought in centre-forward Lawrence Shankland, who scored 16 goals for McInnes in the Scottish Premiership last season.

Since then, McInnes has brought in Ross McCrorie from Bristol City and Dan Neil from Sunderland on permanent deals, whilst Ben Godfrey has joined on loan with an option to buy from Atalanta.

That is unlikely to be the end of the club’s business, though, as the Gers are looking for further additions to push for trophies in the 2026/27 campaign.

One player who has been linked with a move to Ibrox this summer is Motherwell winger Elijah Just, who is a target to add to McInnes’ options on the right flank.

The tactical reason why Rangers must win the race for Elijah Just

There is a key tactical reason why the Light Blues must win the race to sign the New Zealand international, beyond the fact that he would offer a threat as a scorer and a creator of goals.

Just, who scored three goals at the World Cup for his country this summer, is a left-footed right-winger, which is something that McInnes does not currently have at his disposal.

Rohl had to dip into the market to sign Andreas Skov Olsen to fill that position in the January transfer window, but the Dane only scored one goal in the Scottish Premiership before returning to Wolfsburg.

The 26-year-old star would provide the Scottish boss with the option to play inverted wingers on both flanks, as Djeidi Gassama can play on the left as a right-footed player and Just can play on the right as a left-footed star.

He looks to be the perfect signing for Rangers on paper because he fills a tactical niche that they lack and is a proven performer in the Premiership, thanks to his time with Motherwell.

The Rangers player who could be moved on if Elijah Just signs

A deal to bring the New Zealand international to Ibrox in the summer transfer window would not be good news for everyone at the club, though, as one player could suffer as a result of it.

Oliver Antman joined the Scottish giants from Go Ahead Eagles for a fee of £3.5m last summer to bolster Russell Martin’s squad, but he endured a difficult first season in Glasgow.

The 24-year-old forward, who predominantly played on the right wing, failed to establish starter under Martin or Rohl and ended the campaign as a substitute.

He was an unused substitute in five of the last ten Premiership matches, starting twice, and only produced one assist in those games, failing to score for the Light Blues.

Antman ended the season with one goal and three assists in 16 appearances in the league and one goal and five assists in 28 matches in all competitions for the Scottish giants, which shows that he rarely offered quality in the final third.

All bar one of his 28 appearances came on the right wing, which shows that Just would join to play in his main position, and the arrival of a new star would only send him further down the pecking order.

Antman did produce seven goals and 17 assists in all competitions for Go Ahead Eagles in the 2024/25 campaign, prior to his move to Ibrox, but he did not look able to translate that form over to Scottish football.

Just, meanwhile, is a proven Premiership performer who racked up 14 goal contributions in a Motherwell team that finished below Rangers in the table, before also scoring three goals at the World Cup for New Zealand.

The left-footed star would, therefore, join the Gers as a much better right-sided option than Antman for McInnes, whilst also offering more variety to the team as a left-footed player who can open up different angles with the ball at his feet.

Club Brugge were linked with a move for Antman earlier in the summer transfer window, suggesting that there is interest in him, and a move away from Ibrox could beckon for the forward if Just signs to further reduce the likelihood of him playing regular football next term.