Rangers move goes 'one step closer' as fee and contract details revealed for Ibrox exit

Bajrami, 27, was left out of the Rangers squad for their league opener against Dundee United on Friday, with a loan move to the Saudi Pro League understood to be imminent, and fresh reports now claim the deal is just “one step away” from completion, with the club set to recoup close to what they paid for the midfielder almost two years ago.

Moving to Ibrox on deadline day in September 2024 for £3.4million from Sassuolo, the playmaker has struggled to make an impact in the Scottish Premiership, barely featuring for the club last season as they ended the campaign in a disappointing third position for the first time since 2018.

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Upon his arrival at the club, Bajrami had said he was “delighted to be joining a club the size of Rangers”, adding that “they are a club which is known throughout the world, who have won a lot of trophies and competed in a European final in recent years.” While he has shown flickers of his talent, he has been unable to nail down a regular spot, starting just 35 games in all competitions since his arrival two years ago, and scoring seven times.

With new head coach Derek McInnes particularly active in the summer transfer window, he appears to have dropped further down the pecking order this summer following the arrivals of Dan Neil, Cammy Devlin and Vanja Dragojevic. Meanwhile, both Mohamed Diomande and Thelo Aasgaard started ahead of him during the club’s pre-season campaign.

Despite his struggles in Glasgow, it appears the club will recoup close to the fee they originally paid for him, with Italian transfer journalist Nico Schira stating that the club have agreed a fee of around £2.6million for Bajrami. While the report does not state whether that is part of a future fee, it does claim that the player is closing in on a deal until the summer of 2029, which could mean Bajrami leaves the club permanently as opposed to an original loan, as was widely reported last week.

Should the move be rubber-stamped in the coming days, Bajrami will become the fourth first-team exit of the summer window, with the likes of James Tavernier, Jack Butland and Oliver Antman departing Ibrox in recent weeks. The futures of John Souttar and Nico Raskin also remain uncertain, with several clubs interested in the duo.