Russell Martin reveals reason for Igamane and Dessers absences as he directly addresses burning Vardy question

Daily Record

a day ago

The Ibrox boss saw his side come back from two goals down to draw in his first friendly as boss
Russell Martin insists no-one has come close to offering the cash Rangers are demanding for Cyriel Dessers and Hamza Igamane.
But the Ibrox boss admits it's still to early for him to plan on having the front pair to lead his Champions League assault.
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Last season's top scorer Dessers has been linked with a move to Greek outfit AEK Athens all summer, with the Nigerian reportedly keen on the move.
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Talks, however, have stalled after Gers turfed out a £4.5million bid for the 30-year-old.
Igamane, meanwhile, has reportedly agreed personal terms on a move to French giants Lille - but Martin insists the Ligue 1 outfit are yet to make any kid of offer for the £15million-rated Moroccan ace.
Both players sat out Martin's first Ibrox workout as Gers kicked off their pre-season preparations with a 2-2 draw against Club Brugge.
And Martin explained: 'Cyriel, he's just been injured his ankle.
'So, he's here today. We turned down a bid a while ago for him that was nowhere near the valuation for the football club.
'But he's been great. He's been desperate to train. We're had to give him some treatment this week on his ankle since he's been back.
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'But I'm looking forward to working with him.
"So, that [deal is] nowhere near happening. He'll get on the training ground this week and start enjoying it.
'But he's not kicked up one bit of fuss. He seems to be a really good professional. And from what everyone tells him, he really is.
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'And Hamza's (absence) has just been a bit of a red tape. He was due back this week with the other international players.
'He was at the airport and they just didn't have the right visa. I don't think it's anyone's fault. Things have changed since he last got his visa. So, we had to wait for him to get a new one, which he should have tomorrow and he will be with us this week.
'I haven't heard of any [bid], not that I know of.'
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But asked if he was now preparing to have both men in his team for this month's crucial Champions League opener with Panathinaikos, the new gaffer confessed: 'Mate, that's two weeks away so I can't plan for anything in football.'
But Martin is planning on having more new faces to the five who have already checked in so far this summer.
Max Aarons and Manny Fernandez featured in the Brugge bounce game, while Joe Rothwell, Thelo Aasgaards and Lyle Cameron were presented at half-time.
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Gers continue to be linked with a host of other targets, but when quizzed if former England frontman Jamie Vardy was one of them, Martin said: 'I've been asked about so many players.
'Some miles away, some on the money. So, basically, I'm not going to give you an answer.
'But I guess you'll find out who's real and who's not in the next few weeks.
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'I do expect the team to look different again in a week's time.
'But in a couple of weeks, so much can happen in football, so I don't know.
'I think we definitely want to do more, for sure. And also, probably some players need to move on as well at some point as the squad's going to start looking very big and very heavy.'
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Clinton Nsiala is set to be one of those moving on. But Martin is looking forward to welcoming John Souttar back from hernia surgery ahead of the multi-million-pound clash with Panathinaikos on July 22.
He said: 'The big man's good. He's trained the last few days. By the end of the session, he looked absolutely exhausted, which is what we want. But he's reacting really well to his operation and wants to go out and train.
'So he'll be back in properly this week and he'll play next weekend [in a bounce game at St George's Park].
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'Ben Davies is injured, though. He has picked up a small injury.
'As for Clinton, well we signed Emmanuel and I think Clinton's at a point in his age where he needs to play all the time, every week.
'So we've had a really good, honest conversation to let him know the situation really. The best thing is to find the best opportunity to play football.'
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