Kenny Dalglish responds to Ibrox transfer rumours
Kenny Dalglish has claimed Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst will be “punished” for improving Calvin Bassey ahead of his imminent move to Ajax.
The Celtic legend tells the sunday post that it will be “heartbreaking” for van Bronckhorst that he will lose such a “crucial” player to his plans.
While Bassey showed promise when Steven Gerrard was in the Rangers dugout, the sought-after defender took his game to a new level when van Bronckhorst joined the club in November.
Even in the Europa League last season, Bassey excelled for his side despite suffering heartbreak in penalties leading up to the final and in the final itself.
But it seems like Bassey is no longer showing off his talents in Rangers colors as Dalglish shared his thoughts on the matter.
“He seems to be preparing to lose Calvin Bassey now,” Dalglish said. “Right now, that’s a definite possibility. Several teams have been linked with the player recently, most recently Ajax and Brighton.
“According to some reports, the transfer fee could be in the range of £15-20million. It’s not my place to put a price on Bassey. But from what I’ve seen there’s no doubt that he’s a great asset. The fact that Calvin can perform so well in a number of positions makes him even more attractive to other clubs. He can play left-back in a back four or part of a back three.
“His physical strength, pace and ability to execute a cross ball quickly made him a linchpin for Giovanni’s plans. Calvin’s Europa League performances last season put him on other clubs’ radars. But he’s reached a new level in the last six months and Giovanni and his staff have to give great credit for that.
“However, with a high level of consistency in performance, attention is drawn. Giovanni will be heartbroken if Calvin continues. It would almost be like the Rangers manager being punished for improving the player!”
BASSEY IS AJAX-LINKED
With the 2021/22 season over, there has been a lot of interest in Bassey from across Europe, including teams in the Premier League.
Steven Gerrard appeared to want to bring Bassey to Aston Villa but instead the club signed Ludwig Augustinsson from Sevilla at left-back for Lucas Digne.
While a Premier League return is out of the question for the former Leicester City player, it’s only a matter of time before he joins Dutch champions Ajax.
It will be interesting to see how he fares in Holland, with many changes at the Amsterdam club following Erik ten Hag’s move to Manchester United.
And most notably defender Lisandro Martinez, who has the same versatile skills as Bassey and travels to England to return to Ten Hag in Manchester United colors.
In other news, the director says Crystal Palace are in talks to sign Real Madrid’s £42m target
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