LOAN RANGERS
Toral is set to sign for rest of the season as Crooks looks to save Ibrox career
JON TORAL arrives in Glasgow today to join Rangers on loan in a deal that Matt Crooks hopes will secure him the temporary move out of the club that he believes can save his Ibrox career.
Arsenal midfielder Toral did not feature for Granada as his loan stint in La Liga ended in a 5-0 defeat to Real Madrid yesterday.
The 21-year-old will now make his Rangers debut next Sunday against Red Bull Leipzig in a friendly in Germany and spend the remainder of the season with Mark Warburton’s men.
Crooks, meanwhile, has featured only twice as a substitute and started just once for Rangers following ankle problems.
He was last in first-team action for 66 minutes of the 2-0 loss to Hearts at Tynecastle in November.
Crooks has been fully fit since then but not selected and he agonised over those omissions before approaching Warburton to request a loan period away.
With Toral secured, a temporary return south for Crooks in search of regular football may well be on the cards.
‘I don’t want this club to think I’m giving anything up,’ said Crooks. ‘I can’t emphasise enough how honoured I feel to be here. I am in a privileged position at Rangers.
‘But I’ve been fully fit for two months and I haven’t played. Ultimately, I just want to play. If that means going elsewhere, it’s something I must do.
‘I still have three years left on my contract here, so it’s not as if time isn’t on my side. I have had a conversation with the manager and he understands my situation.
‘But I appreciate that it has to be right for the club and myself. The plan would be to go away, play a lot of football, get back to being the player I was.
‘Then I can come back to Rangers in the summer fit and raring to go.’