Top Rangers talent emerges as shock Arsenal, Chelsea target as transfer battle brews | OneFootball

A top Rangers defensive talent has emerged as a shock transfer target for heavyweight Premier League duo Arsenal and Chelsea, according to a fresh report.

Despite the respective seasons in Scotland and England still having three months left to run, there is already plenty of speculation over summer transfer business – although this latest link has come as somewhat of a surprise.

Giant Rangers centre-back Emmanuel Fernandez is the player in question, having moved to Ibrox in a £4million switch from Peterborough over the summer.

Fernandez, who stands at 6ft 4in, actually started the campaign slowly but has become a regular starter for Rangers over recent months and was awarded the Player of the Month award for January.

Five goals in 22 appearances have also seen him become a threat inside the opponent’s box, something Arsenal will have been particularly drawn to, given how strongly Mikel Arteta values set-piece play.

Indeed, Fernandez has played a key role in Rangers’ resurgence under Danny Rohl that now sees them sit just two points behind Scottish Premiership leaders in a title race they were previously not in the mix for.

And now a report in All Nigeria Soccer claims that interest is growing in the 24-year-old, with Arsenal and Chelsea firmly in that mix for his signature.

Fernandez has even been likened to Liverpool legend Virgil Van Dijk, in terms of his style of play, and has been at the heart of a Gers backline alongside John Souttar that has the second-best defensive record in the league.

The report also claims that German heavyweights Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund are also keeping tabs on Fernandez’s development, although a move is not believed to be imminent as no formal discussions have taken place.

One to keep an eye on, it would seem.