Fit-again Ianis Hagi ready to make big impact for Rangers this season

Ianis Hagi feels ready to have “a great season” for Rangers as he bids to get back on track following his recent year-long injury lay-off.

The 24-year-old Romanian attacker returned to action in January, 12 months after damaging his anterior cruciate ligament in a Scottish Cup match against Stirling Albion.

Hagi managed to fit in 11 appearances – four as a starter – in the closing months of last term as he tried to rediscover match fitness and sharpness.

However, it is only now, after a gruelling pre-season, that he believes he is finally back in prime condition and ready to make a genuine impact in Michael Beale’s team.

“I feel really good,” he told Rangers TV. “I feel strong. I can run and I feel like I’m at the same level as everybody else.

“It’s just a matter of getting minutes for me. My confidence is really high, I can’t wait for the season to start. I know what type of player I am and what I can bring to the table. Without doubt, I know I’ll have a great season.”

Hagi – son of former Romania midfielder Gheorghe – has enjoyed getting to know a batch of new team-mates this summer, with Beale overseeing a big rebuild at Ibrox.

Kieran Dowell, Dujon Sterling, Jack Butland, Sam Lammers, Abdallah Sima, Cyriel Dessers and Leon Balogun have already arrived, while Ecuadorean midfielder Jose Cifuentes and Brazilian striker Danilo are also expected to seal moves to the club.

“It’s been really good, a lot of new faces have come into the dressing room and they’re keen to show what they can do,” said Hagi.

“They push each other and they push us, the guys who have been here for a while. It’s a good mix.”

Rangers suffered a 3-1 defeat in a friendly at home to Greek side Olympiacos on Wednesday after testing encounters against Newcastle and Hamburg over the previous week.

The Light Blues face another challenging warm-up match away to Hoffenheim on Saturday as they bid to get themselves in optimum condition for their cinch Premiership opener at Kilmarnock a week later.

“It was another pre-season test to get minutes into our legs,” Hagi said of the Olympiacos defeat.

“The last two weeks have been quite tough. We’ve had a lot of running and got a lot of kilometres into our legs.

“It’s not easy going out and trying to play through your fatigue but we have to do it so we can be ready for the start of the season.”