Rangers target is too hot to handle for PSV
PSV Eindhoven have ruled themselves out of the race for Rangers target Joey Veerman, amid reports his club, Heerenveen, have slapped a £8.5-million price tag on the midfielder.
Steven Gerrard refused to discuss transfer targets during the week, but he has revealed he will strengthen for next season’s campaign as the Light Blues attempt to retain their Premiership crown.
They have been linked with a move for the classy 22-year-old, who has scored nine goals and assisted in a further 10 in the Dutch Eredivisie this season.
The player has also been linked with Italian Serie A outfit, Atalanta, and Reims of Ligue 1 in France.
Fellow Dutch side PSV were said to be leading the chase for Veerman, but their manager, Roger Schmidt, has revealed there’s no chance of them meeting Heerenveen’s chunky asking price.
He said: “Veerman is a very good player, especially with the ball.
“He always has good attacking ideas, makes good decisions under pressure, and always looks ahead. He has great vision.
“He is very good at providing for the wingers and the strikers.
“So Veerman is a great player, I am not going to deny it, and we are always looking at improving the team.
“’I’ve only been here for a year now, but I already know that it is not easy for PSV to buy players from other Dutch clubs.
“They are always very expensive. So I don’t know if we can just get top players from the Eredivisie.
“I also don’t know what Veerman will cost exactly.
“But when we talk in the Netherlands internally about players like him, it’s very evident we won’t be able to afford his transfer fee.
“PSV can’t spend that kind of money, and the point of reference for us is Ajax.
“They have a good team and a very big budget. We do not.”