Glasgow Rangers head coach Philippe Clement dipped into the market to make a host of new additions to his first-team squad during the summer transfer window.
Following Todd Cantwell’s exit from the group, and subsequent permanent transfer to Blackburn Rovers, the Belgian boss needed a new number ten.
The Light Blues manager swooped to sign Albania international Nedim Bajrami from Italian side Sassuolo on deadline day for a reported fee of £3.4m, after his return of two goals and two assists in 28 matches in the Serie A last season.
Rangers will be hoping that they have hit the jackpot with the 25-year-old attacking midfielder, in the same way that they did with former star Joe Aribo.
How much Rangers paid to sign Joe Aribo
The attacking midfielder’s contract with English League One side Charlton Athletic in the summer of 2019 and that allowed the Gers to snap him up.
However, due to Aribo being 22 at the time, the Scottish Premiership giants were required to pay a compensation fee of around £300k for his services.
The Nigeria international has produced ten goals and five assists in 39 appearances in League One, including the play-offs, during the 2018/19 campaign, which convinced Steven Gerrard to secure his services.
Rangers invested in the young midfielder and worked with him to develop his game over the next few years, before cashing in on him for a significant profit – worth more than the fee the club just paid for Bajrami.
How much Rangers received for Joe Aribo
The Nigerian whiz hit the ground running at Ibrox with a return of nine goals and eight assists in 49 appearances in all competitions in his first season with the club.
Aribo, whose style was described as “languid” by former teammate Ezri Konsa, followed that up with eight goals and seven assists in 43 matches for the Scottish giants, in the season that Rangers won the Premiership unbeaten.
His best campaign in a Light Blues jersey, however, came in his third and final year in Glasgow, as he produced nine goals and ten assists – including a goal in the Europa League final defeat to Frankfurt.
Appearances
34
Goals
8
Big chances created
9
Assists
5
Key passes per game
1.8
As you can see in the table above, Aribo caught the eye with his contributions as a scorer of goals and a creator of chances from a central midfield position under Gerrard and Gio van Bronckhorst that term.
His form in the 2021/22 campaign convinced Premier League side Southampton to sign him for a reported fee of £6m, that could rise to £10m with add-ons, in the summer of 2022, which shows that they sold him for more than they paid for Bajrami – in the same position – this summer.
This shows that the Gers hit the jackpot with Aribo as they turned a £300k signing into a potential £10m sale within the space of three seasons.
Rangers blundered by releasing SPFL star who's now worth more than Yilmaz
The Light Blues had a howler when they opted to allow the defender to walk away for nothing.
1 ByDan EmerySep 8, 2024
Hopefully, Bajrami will produce consistent quality on the pitch in an attacking midfield role, as Aribo did, and develop into a player who the club can make a significant profit on in the future.