Rangers Still Have An Issue After Signing Striker On Free: Is This Still A Good Deal For The Club? | OneFootball

Rangers have signed Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland on a two-year deal with an option for a further 12 months, after activating a break clause buried inside the three-year contract he had only signed at Tynecastle last summer. The move, confirmed by both clubs this week according to Football Insider, will officially go through on 15 June once the transfer window opens. Shankland departs Hearts having scored 88 goals in 171 appearances, finishing as the club’s top scorer in every single one of his four seasons there.

Rangers land Hearts striker for free, but the true cost may not be zero

Stefan Borson, a former Manchester City financial adviser speaking exclusively to Football Insider, has suggested that the move may not be entirely cost-free for Rangers despite the headline figure reading zero. Borson acknowledged that Hearts entered last summer’s contract extension with full awareness that a break clause existed and that a rival club could eventually trigger it.

He noted that some form of undisclosed payment may have been negotiated between the two clubs, which would explain why the precise financial terms of the deal remain confidential. Both clubs confirmed only that the transfer was completed on undisclosed terms. Hearts, Borson argued, are not a naive operation, particularly given their evolution as a club in recent years, and they would have accepted the risk with clear heads rather than naivety.

“They’d have gone in with their eyes open, so, is it a mistake? I think it’s hard to call it a mistake. I think it’s just simply a case of they understood the risk, but decided to do it anyway.

“It’s not a surprise, not a mistake, but disappointing because they’ve lost the player for zero, but you know, there might be some payment in there. But they probably had no choice.

“The clubs aren’t stupid, particularly Hearts these days. With the resources that they have now, especially within the post-Bloom world, they know what they’re doing. They’re not stupid.

“They’ll have weighed up the likelihood of this happening, and they’ll have taken a decision based upon the likelihood of it, and they won’t be surprised by this outcome. They might be disappointed, but they won’t be surprised, and they’ll just have to deal with it.

“I’m sure they wanted to bring in loads of money for him, but, unfortunately, it’s just not the way it’s panned out. But they’ll have done it with their eyes open, which is the key.”

Rangers gain a proven scorer, but questions linger

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND – MAY 30: Lawrence Shankland of Scotland inspects the pitch prior to the international friendly match between Scotland and Curacao at Hampden Park on May 30, 2026 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by WM Sport Media/Getty Images)

From a Rangers perspective, this transfer represents a sharp piece of business in theory, but carries some complications worth examining honestly. Shankland scored 16 Scottish Premiership goals last season as Hearts came agonisingly close to winning a historic league title, and Rangers had actually passed on the chance to sign him the previous summer when he was a free agent.

That missed opportunity makes this deal feel like unfinished business. Rangers head coach Danny Röhl confirmed the club want to return to winning silverware more regularly, and Shankland, a boyhood Rangers supporter, has arrived with that stated ambition. The possible hidden fees are a loose thread, but for a striker of his domestic pedigree arriving without a transfer fee, Rangers have still secured genuine quality for Ibrox at a market value of approximately €2.7m. The gamble looks justified.