Skrtel agent says Rangers can’t afford the defender

The agent of Martin Skrtel has appeared to rule out any possibility of his client signing for Rangers, saying the Ibrox club could not afford his wages.

Skrtel has been linked with a move to Glasgow since his former Liverpool team-mate Steven Gerrard became Rangers manager in the summer. The 33-year-old is currently at Fenerbahce following his move from Anfield in 2016.

While Karol Csonto insisted his client is an admirer of Gerrard, there would be no chance of a reunion in Glasgow.

“Financially there is no chance of Martin going to Rangers,” Csonto was quoted as saying. “He couldn’t get half of his wages in Glasgow. It would be more like a third.

“Yes, he has great respect for Steven Gerrard but there’s no point in having a discussion because financially it’s just not realistic.”

Rangers host Livingston tomorrow looking to atone for their loss against the West Lothian side earlier in the season.

Gary Holt, the Almondvale side’s manager, expects a very different game this time.

Livingston shocked Gerrard’s team in September when Dolly Menga’s winner clinched a 1-0 upset at the Tony Macaroni Arena. Gerrard said his side could have played “for another 180 minutes and would not have looked like scoring”.

But Holt now expects to see Rangers bare their teeth. “The last game is done and dusted – it will have no relevance at all,” said Holt. “In Scottish football you get to play each other quite a bit, so you can’t focus on what you’ve done before.

“It can allow you to show the players where we did hurt them previously and where Rangers caused us problems. But we’re away from home this time and we have to go there and stand up to the test.

“At Ibrox, Rangers are scoring a lot of goals and they are certainly a different beast.”

Holt tasted success at Ibrox as a player, scoring in a 3-0 Kilmarnock win over Dick Advocaat’s bigspending Rangers in 2000.