RANGERS CONFIDENTIAL: Danilo looking for inspiration from Pele ahead of Panathinaikos clash ... and the search for top dollar for Mohamed Diomande

Rangers striker Danilo has been taking inspiration from late Brazilian legend Pele as he bids to shoot down Panathinaikos in the Champions League qualifiers.

The Ibrox outfit have revealed this week that they have a club shirt signed by Pele that will be on display in the Ibrox trophy room over the course of the summer.

It has been loaned to them by a supporter in America, with Danilo taking the opportunity to go into the stadium and see it for himself.

The 26-year-old has featured heavily in pre-season, with neither Cyriel Dessers nor Hamza Igamane deemed fit, and must be in the box seat for a starting slot in next Tuesday’s second qualifying round first leg against the Greek side at Ibrox.

He admits that being next to a garment touched by the great Pele has given him the special ‘energy’ that will be required to take Russell Martin’s new-look Rangers to the next stage.

‘The shirt is giving me energy right now and I can hopefully do the same thing he (Pele) has done,’ said Danilo in an interview with club media. ‘It shows how big Rangers are. If you are able to get a shirt Pele signed, it is really good and it is an honour for Rangers fans and me to be next to a shirt Pele signed.

‘I hope a lot of people can see it and enjoy it.

‘Pele means passion of football and how the Brazilian people love playing.

‘I was not able to watch him playing but, when you see YouTube and all the videos, he was phenomenal. That’s why he was called the King of Brazil.

‘He means everything for Brazilian people. Every generation passes and you still hear his name. We keep him in our memories and everything he did for us.’

Rangers seeking top dollar for their sparkling Diomande 

Besiktas are understood to be seeking a return for left-back Ridvan Yilmaz – but reports in Turkey have stated that the club are also interested in Rangers midfielder Mohamed Diomande.

Yilmaz joined the Ibrox outfit for £3.4million from Besiktas in 2022 and there have been discussions about him returning home in a loan move with an option to buy.

However, the jungle drums state that the Istanbul-based outfit are also keen admirers of Diomande, with management clear that they want to strengthen in the centre of the field.

Besiktas are reported to be considering an offer in the region of £7m, but it’s understood that Rangers would want considerably more than that for the 23-year-old Ivory Coast international.

That's no surprise given that Diomande was one of the team's most impressive performers during an otherwise frustrating season for the Ibrox club. 

Player-trading models are now the name of the game after years of Rangers failing to sell assets when they were hot.

Hard as it will be to swallow for Rangers fans who have warmed to Diomande, if the price is right he will be on his way.

Former Ibrox stars provide cautionary tale for John Souttar

If John Souttar ends up moving to Trabzonspor in the weeks ahead, he will be following a path well-trodden by Rangers players in recent years.

A move to the Super Lig club, who are reported to have bid £1.3m for his services, would make Souttar the fifth Rangers player in two years to swap Ibrox for Turkey.

No fewer than four of those who played under Steven Gerrard moved directly there, although Souttar would hope to fare rather better than his predecessors.

First it was winger Ryan Kent who joined Fenerbahce, only to struggle under Jose Mourinho and have his contract terminated. He spent five months without a club before joining Seattle Sounders in March.

Then it was defender Borna Barisic and midfielder John Lundstram, both of whom joined Trabzonspor a year ago and are now facing uncertain futures.

Last season, Barisic was shipped out on loan to Leganes, where he suffered a serious injury in his first game. Turkish media claim that his contract with Trabzonspor is to be terminated, while Lundstram could be sold as part of a rebuild under Fatih Tekke, their fourth permanent manager in just under a year.

Ryan Jack was slow to find another club after he was released by Rangers last summer. His move to Esenlor Erokspor in September was a step down, but he has been a regular for them in Turkey’s second tier.

Back in the day, goalkeeper Allan McGregor and striker Kenny Miller both swapped Rangers for Turkish clubs. While neither player could be deemed a failure - McGregor helped Besiktas finish third in the league - their spells there were short-lived.

Those will be cautionary tales for 28-year-old Souttar as he weighs up what to do next, but he is his own man, with his own personality and his own idea of what will suit him best as he enters into the final year of his Rangers contract.

As he approaches what should be the peak of his career, the main thing for Souttar - and for Scotland - is that he remains happy and playing every week, whether that is with Rangers, in Turkey or somewhere else altogether.

MacLean's exit is biggest blow yet for Rangers women

Rangers’ women are not exactly enjoying the perfect pre-season. Having lost their manager during the summer break, now they have lost their best player.

The club announced earlier this week that Scotland international Kirsty MacLean had joined Liverpool, a move that leaves a gaping hole in Rangers’ starting 11.

It came 10 days after fellow midfielder Chelsea Cornet joined Birmingham City and, more significantly, three weeks after head coach Jo Potter departed for Crystal Palace.

No wonder some supporters are growing anxious. While the new SWPL season is still a month away, Rangers returned to training over a week ago and a series of friendlies is fast approaching.

With Middlesbrough visiting Broadwood a week on Sunday, and Rangers spending the following week in Italy, where they will play Inter and AC Milan, a new manager needs to be appointed as a matter of urgency.

There are training sessions to oversee, plans to lay and players to buy if Rangers are serious about winning the league title that eluded them last season.

MacLean’s departure is a blow to those prospects. Nicknamed ‘Ini’ after a certain Spanish playmaker, the 20-year-old was one of the best young talents in the league.

She joined Rangers at nine years old, represented Scotland at every age group - her international career already includes 10 full caps - and made more than 100 professional appearances for her club.

‘It was an incredibly hard decision to leave,’ said MacLean. ‘Being at the club for so long, it means a lot to me. To leave was hard was but I feel like it was the right time for me to move on to something new.

‘I will miss everyone at the club so much. I said to the girls they all mean so much to me and I mean it. It was really hard to leave but I am leaving with the best memories and it has been the best 11 years. I couldn’t have asked for a better group of girls to do it with.’