Ipswich bid £1.2m for Windass
RANGERS were last night weighing up a £1.2million bid from Ipswich Town for Josh Windass. The Championship club are seeking a replacement for Derby-bound £5m man Martyn Waghorn. And Windass, who scored 18 goals for Rangers in all competitions last season, is the man they want before tomorrow night’s English transfer deadline. Windass signed a contract extension as recently as February. Linked last night
with a move for Dinamo Zagreb striker Armin Hodzic, Rangers are seeking a a hefty sell-on clause before agreeing to sell the former Accrington Stanley attacker. Meanwhile, Borna Barisic has set his sights on becoming a permanent fixture for World Cup finalists Croatia after Steven Gerrard made him his 11th new recruit at Rangers. The £2m left-back impressed the Ibrox management in his role as captain of Osijek despite his team’s elimination from the Europa League by the Scottish side. The 25-year-old, who scored with a deflected strike in the second leg in Govan, yesterday penned a four-year deal with Gerrard’s side. Barisic, who has three caps for his country, made Croatia’s preliminary squad for the World Cup but did not make boss Zlatko Dalic’s final cut. However, he believes moving to Glasgow, where he will team up with fellow Croatian defender Nikola Katic, will boost his international ambitions. ‘This club will give me a chance to play for the national team again,’ said Barisic. ‘Nikola Katic is my friend. I have played with him once in the Croatian national team and he is a great player and a great guy. I’m really excited to play with him again. ‘I’m very excited to be part of Rangers. It’s such a big family and a club with the most trophies in the world. ‘I know about Rangers. They have won the Scottish title 54 times and I know about the Old Firm.’ Barisic admitted he was blown away by the ‘crazy’ atmosphere at Ibrox when a 1-1 draw gave Rangers a 2-1 aggregate win and set up a third-round qualifier against Maribor, who they play at home in the first leg tomorrow. He will not be eligible for the play-off rounds but will be available if Gerrard’s men reach the group stage. Barisic will provide competition for Jon Flanagan at left-back. That has pushed Declan John down the pecking order, with the Welshman believed to be a target for Swansea City, while Rangers remain keen to seal a loan deal for Bournemouth centre-back Jake Simpson. Meanwhile, Greg Docherty is set to join Shrewsbury Town on a season-long loan deal.