Rangers have been placed on alert after fresh reporting claimed Celtic have tabled an improved bid for Sandefjord defender Zinedin Smajlovic.
The 22-year-old centre-back has been linked with Rangers, Celtic and Hull City, with the latest update saying the Parkhead club have moved to strengthen their position in the chase. The report says Celtic’s proposal is worth an initial EUR4.5m plus EUR2m in add-ons, according to a fresh update from 67 Hail Hail.
For Rangers, the relevance is straightforward. Derek McInnes is still shaping the first summer window of his Ibrox tenure, and any defensive target shared with Celtic immediately becomes a test of speed, valuation and conviction.
Rangers cannot let a live defensive race drift
Smajlovic is still a developing profile rather than a finished Premiership certainty, but that is exactly why the timing matters. A defender with European suitors can move quickly once one club turns interest into a structured bid.
Rangers do not need to overreact to every rival move, but they do need clarity. If Smajlovic is genuinely on the list, the next step has to be decisive: either match the seriousness of the chase or move cleanly to the next centre-back target. That decision will tell supporters plenty about how sharply this rebuild is being run.
