£1m or no Laff
Hearts will play hardball with Rangers over Kyle Lafferty unless they get real with a bid closer to £1million.
MailSport understands the Tynecastle club viewed the initial Ibrox bid of £200,000 – including staged payment terms – as an insult and disrespectful.
And with the clubs having previous conflict in the field over Gers’ pursuit of Jamie Walker last year, it’s unlikely Ann Budge will move towards any kind of middle g round f rom Hearts’ valuation.
The Jambos owner is also believed to be sceptical of a
deal for the player involving any number of financial instalments.
Lafferty, who scored 19 goals in 41 appearances for the Jambos last term, is now in the final year of his two-year contract.
Rangers will make a second bid for Laf ferty this week but MailSport understands it won’t be more than £ 300,000 – a figure the Ibrox hierarchy think is reasonable for the 30-year- old striker.
It’s believed Lafferty is keen on a return to Gers after a previous four-year stint in Govan and the club hope that desire will help push a deal through.
The hitman has recently attracted interest from Azerbaijani Champions League outfit Qarabag and South Korea’s FC Seoul.
If Lafferty did rejoin Gers it would be six years after his departure from Ibrox.