Hearts have reportedly won the race to sign Steven Naismith from Norwich City on a short-term loan deal. The 29-year-old was eager to play for Rangers but it looks like his departure from the club had something to do with his move to the Ibrox club.
Norwich City have been ready to offload the out of favour midfielder for some time now to clear out his massive £50,000 a week wage bill which was set to run till the summer of 2019. Naismith was so desperate to leave the Canaries he even opted to play for free at the Ibrox Stadium. But it, unfortunately, did not turn the heads of fans or management who were left feeling like a betrayed party when he left for Everton back in July 2012. His career showed great promise in the Premier League but unfortunately could not keep up with the physicality of it. He slid down the Toffees pecking order before signing with Norwich and even there he could not prevent the side from being relegated to the Championship.
The Irvine-born midfielder is very talented both technically and in terms of footballing intelligence. He mainly appears in the number ten role and could have brought a lot of top-flight experience to a title contending side like Rangers. But now that his transfer has already been confirmed with their rivals, maybe Graeme Murty will have to scout for a replacement by the end of January. The 43-year-old gaffer has already made four signings over the past couple of weeks and might be looking to add more in order to close the 11 point gap between them and league leaders Celtic.
James McArthur
He began his career by playing in the Ranger South BC before joining Hamilton Academical in 2005. He played for the Scottish side for five years before moving to England in 2010.
Bringing in a player like James McArthur who is a long-term Rangers fans and have the experience of playing in England will add an exciting new dynamic to the Rangers side.
Greg Docherty
The Hamilton midfielder has a contract running till 2020 and is expected to cost around £300,000. Hamilton boss Martin Canning has not ruled out a transfer for the midfielder to Rangers this January.
The Scotland U21 midfielder is also believed to be on the radar of Cardiff City, something that could drive up Hamilton’s asking price.
Since his debut back in 2013, the player has already earned over 100 appearances for the Scottish club and is known to be a player of good energy and endurance in the middle of the park.
Nick Powell
Wigan Athletic are trying very hard to hold onto the highly rated former Manchester United midfielder who is attracting a lot of attention from Premier League and Championship sides. He should be one to bolster the club ranks immensely at Rangers.
