Rangers confirmed the signing of Hearts defender John Souttar on a free transfer yesterday.
The deal had been wrapped up all the way back in January when the 25-year-old put pen to paper on a pre-contract agreement but some fans on Twitter feigned surprise when the new addition was officially announced:
What a signing π€©
β Sasha (@Sasha_PFC) June 1, 2022
Wow didn’t see that coming
β John Nicol (@johnboyred99) June 1, 2022
Cracking signing that
β Matty bennett (@Mattybennett44) June 1, 2022
About time πππ»
β Chelsea ππ¬π§ (@chelsea_1872) June 1, 2022
Best Hearts player in the cup final by a country mile , will only get better and stronger with us π Welcome to the greatest club on earth JS π΄βͺοΈπ΅
β Gary Johnstone (@garyj85) June 1, 2022
Good addition to the squad, let’s hope it all works out well.
β Lets Gioπ¬π§π΄σ §σ ’σ ³σ £σ ΄σ Ώπ³π± (@ArgyllWarrior) June 1, 2022
Top player him but hes made of glass ππππ
β π«§Luke Evansβ (@TheLukeEvans17) June 1, 2022
Top signing.
β Ryan Wood (@ryanwood961) June 1, 2022
With Connor Goldson having signed a new four-year contract, manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst has some decent options in the centre of defence ahead of next campaign.
Filip Helander should be fit for pre-season after an injury-hit year, while Calvin Bassey has also shown his abilities as a centre-half. Even if Leon Balogun does leave, the Gers still have a young defender in Leon King who can take his place.
In regards to what the future holds for Souttar, though, it will be hoped that his past fitness problems won’t impact his time at Ibrox. If he can stay on the pitch, the Light Blues should have an excellent defender to call upon.