Rangers Rule Out January Sale Of Striker: Is Holding Firm Right?

Rangers Rule Out January Sale Of Striker: Is Holding Firm Right? Rangers have told every suitor that Ryan Naderi will not leave in January, according to journalist Fraser Fletcher . Wolverhampton Wanderers, West Ham , an unnamed Premier League club and a Bundesliga side have all shown interest in the 23-year-old striker, yet Ibrox sources reportedly refuse to entertain a winter bid. Any serious offer now looks likely to wait until the summer window. Naderi cost £4.7m from Hansa Rostock on deadline day in the winter window, and the German-born Czech international has repaid that investment quickly. He has 10 goal contributions in 11 games in 2026/27 so far for the Ibrox club in the league, which makes him the leading figure in Derek McInnes’s attack. His contract runs until 2029, so Rangers can set whatever price they like. What Naderi gives McInnes Necessity helped his rise. Youssef Chermiti and Lawrence Shankland missed large parts of the autumn through injury, and Naderi took the central role and kept it. At 6ft 4in, he wins aerial duels, and both goals in the 3-1 win over Kilmarnock on 10 October came from headers. FotMob data also places his defensive work and chance creation among the highest for forwards in the league. His first Old Firm goal decided the 1-0 win at Celtic Park on 20 September. The flaws are easy to spot. He completes fewer than a third of his dribbles and wins under four in 10 of his duels, so he rarely carries the ball past defenders or holds it up under pressure. Rangers get the best from him when wide players deliver early crosses, not when they ask him to create chances alone. That profile explains why the club will not sell. Rangers remain in the title race and the domestic cups, and finding a striker with this output in January, when selling clubs rarely loosen their grip, is close to impossible. Naderi wants the same thing, according to the report, and sees Glasgow as the place to win trophies before he considers a move. Are Rangers right to turn away every January offer for Naderi? PAISLEY, SCOTLAND – NOVEMBER 07: Ryan Naderi of Rangers celebrates scoring his team’s first goal via a penalty kick during the William Hill Premiership 2026/27 match between St. Mirren and Glasgow Rangers at St Mirren Park on November 07, 2026 in Paisley, Scotland. (Photo by Zak Mauger/Getty Images) Yes, and the main reason is replacement. Rangers have not won the league since 2021, and McInnes has no obvious alternative who scores at Naderi’s rate while Chermiti and Shankland work back to fitness. Selling in January would leave a hole that a loan or a bargain buy would struggle to fill, and it would cost them ground in a title race they can still win. The financial case for waiting is just as strong. Naderi’s contract runs to 2029, so his price will rise if the goals keep coming, and a summer sale would give recruitment staff months to find a successor. Rangers should still protect themselves. His duel numbers show he works best alongside a forward who holds the ball up, so the club should target that profile in the summer whether Naderi stays or goes. A new contract on improved wages, perhaps with a release clause set high, would also guard against a cheap exit later. Rangers paid just £4.7m, and any buyer should expect to pay several times that.