'I was going to Rangers...': £22million defender lifts lid on failed Ibrox move and why he snubbed transfer
The ex-Manchester City defender revealed he was in talks over a transfer to Rangers.
Former England star Joleon Lescott has opened up on the dramatic twist that resulted in him snubbing a move to Rangers under ex-manager Mark Warburton, lifting the lid on why his highly anticipated transfer to Ibrox fell apart at the final hurdle.
A two-time English Premier League winner with Manchester City, Lescott earned 26 caps for England during an illustrious career that saw him enjoy successful spells with the likes of Everton, Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Aston Villa before bringing down the curtain on his career following a short stint with Sunderland in May 2017.
Prior to signing for the Black Cats, the centre-back was heavily linked with a move to Rangers in the summer of 2016. Reports had claimed that former Rangers head coach Mark Warburton had met with Lescott, who cost Manchester City £22million in 2009, to discuss a potential switch to Ibrox following their promotion from the Scottish Championship the previous campaign.
Following reports of the club’s interest in the experienced defender, Warburton had made several key statements reflecting his optimism and reasoning about the potential transfer, claiming his arrival could help increase Rangers' profile ahead of their return to the top flight. When the move broke down, the Gers boss cited family reasons as being behind Lescott’s failure to sign for the club, adding that issues with not being able to agree personal terms or that he had failed medical as “absolute nonsense”.
However, nine years on from the failed Ibrox transfer, the former Cityzens ace has offered his side of events and revealed what really happened during an appearance on Adebayo Akinfenwa’s ‘Beast Mode On’ podcast earlier this week.
“I was going to Rangers,” explained Lescott. “I went up there. The manager, [Mark] Warburton, came down to meet me two weeks before and said, 'Sign here'. I was supposed to meet the manager and the chief executive for dinner. So I get there with my agent, and the chief executive says he can't make it, they're signing a player, someone's flying in.
“I'm going there to sign, by the way, I'm not going there to talk - I'm signing. So it's cool. Don't see him, don't need a scan because they know my history, they know my reputation. My game availability is my medical. I wake up the morning of the signing, and they want to do a scan for the insurance. I said 'no problem', thinking 'this isn't right'. Go and do a scan, go back to the training ground. Get into the reception.
“I'm going to sign in order to train. So I go and put my kit on, and I'm in the gym. Bearing in mind, the manager has not come downstairs, I now know something isn’t right. So my agent's in the doctor's room, he isn’t saying anything. He's fuming. So the doctor said he found something on the scan. I said 'it's fine', I didn't even let him finish, and I said to my agent we're going.”
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