Rangers have deadline day bid for John Souttar rejected

Rangers have had an offer to sign John Souttar rejected after they tried to land the player on deadline day.

The Hearts centre-back has signed a pre-contract deal to move to Ibrox at the end of the season but Rangers have been keen to see him make the move sooner rather than later.

A previous offer to make an immediate move was rejected and Rangers made a second offer on Monday, only to see it rejected by the Hearts board.

The Premiership champions could yet go back with an improved third bid before the transfer window closes at midnight.

Souttar was a man in demand after coming back from career-threatening ankle injuries to become a key player at Hearts and forced his was back into the Scotland squad. With his contract running down, he had interest from clubs in England as well as the option to remain at Tynecastle but took the decision to sign a pre-contract agreement with Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side.

Speaking on Monday, Hearts head coach Robbie Neilson had reiterated his desire to see Souttar see out the season at Tynecastle and said the club would not budge on their valuation. However, he didn’t rule out a late move and said there would be potential replacements lined up.

“We’re actively looking to see what’s out there in the market,” Neilson said. “We’ve said all along it has to be the right one that comes in. There’s no panic here because we’ve got other good defenders here but first and foremost I’d like to keep John if we can.”

Rangers are also hopeful of a major deadline day deal with Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey in Glasgow to finalise a loan move from the Italian giants. The Wales international is surplus to requirements in Turin and Rangers hope he can strengthen their title defence.