In Rangers’ pursuit of a “inexhaustible” £4.3 million Dowell improvement, Koppen may score his first career goal.

At the beginning of October, Glasgow Rangers announced the departure of English tactician Michael Beale as their new head coach.

During his tenure as the main man in command, the former Gers assistant, who had previously worked at Ibrox under Steven Gerrard, was unable to win any trophies.

After the manager was permitted to make nine additions during the summer transfer window, the board decided to take action after he lost three of his first seven Scottish Premiership games this season.

Along with Abdallah Sima, who was brought in on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, Jack Butland, Kieran Dowell, Jose Cifuentes, Leon Balogun, Dujon Sterling, Danilo, Cyriel Dessers, and Sam Lammers were all signed to long-term contracts.

Nevertheless, several of those players have struggled in Scottish football, and Beale’s replacement, Philippe Clement, will have to cope with the fallout from that window.

The Belgian manager, who is expected to join from PSV as the team’s new director of football recruiting in January, will have assistance from Nils Koppen as he hopes for better luck with his own transfers at Ibrox.

When the news broke, the 38-year-old informed Rangers’ official website that he had received clear communication from the board stating that the player trading model “has to function better” and that the January window represents his first chance to have an influence on the team.

Darius Olaru’s transfer to the Rangers

Koppen might pull off a first-ever masterstroke at Ibrox by rekindling the team’s interest in Darius Olaru. He will need to find a balance between selling the right players and bringing in the right ones to replace them.

The FCSB star was reportedly on the Gers’ radar for “some time” during the summer since they were looking for a left-footed midfielder to increase their attacking options.

According to Mihai Stoica, the president of the Romanian team, he would not accept an offer that fell short of €5 million (£4.3 million). The creative maestro’s contract with the team has a release clause that allows him to go if a club makes an offer of that amount.

However, the source also stated that Rangers decided against moving for Olaru because they could sign Dowell, a left-footed midfielder, for free from Norwich City.

That move has not worked out for the Light Blues, though, and it was recently stated by Heart & Hand podcaster David Edgar that the English whiz is one of the three players, alongside Dessers and Ridvan Yilmaz, who have been told that they need to find a new club.

Of course, there is no guarantee that Rangers will be able to find a buyer for Dowell but his exit could open the door for Koppen to secure his first masterclass by selling the ex-Everton prospect to free up the space for a swoop for Olaru.

Dowell’s season in numbers

The 26-year-old flop has endured a difficult first half of the season as he struggled for minutes at the start of the campaign before suffering from injury issues.

Dowell came in from Norwich and featured in six matchday squads throughout August. However, Beale only handed him a start in two of those games.

The English gem did show a glimpse of what he could be capable of with a terrific cameo against Livingston in the Premiership as the left-footed talent came off the bench to rifle a fantastic finish into the far corner.

However, that is the only goal contribution the former Canaries star, who has not created a single chance for his teammates in three league outings, has made at the top end of the pitch in seven clashes for Rangers this season.

Beale claimed that Dowell, who suffered a knock at the end of August, was set to return from injury at the end of September but his next appearance came on the 1st of November and he has not played any matches for the first-team since then.

Clement has not provided a recent update on the attacking midfielder’s fitness and it, therefore, remains to be seen when he will next be available for selection.

Koppen must now ruthlessly ditch Dowell, who has already been told that he can leave, upon his arrival at the start of next month and replace him with Olaru, who would come in as an upgrade.

The statistics that show Olaru would be an upgrade on Dowell

The 25-year-old magician’s impressive statistics for FCSB since the start of last season suggest that he would come in and offer far more to the team.

For starters, the Romania international has also missed three matches – due to a head injury – over the last 18 months and this shows that he could be significantly more reliable than Dowell in terms of his fitness and availability.

Olaru has played 54 league matches since the start of the 2022/23 campaign – whereas the current Rangers man has managed 26 – for the Gers and Norwich combined – in that time.

The left-footed wizard has contributed with seven goals, ten ‘big chances’ created, and 2.1 key passes per match in 17 Superliga appearances for his club so far this season.

Last term, the £4.3m-rated sensation scored one goal, provided seven assists, created 19 ‘big chances’, and made 2.2 key passes per clash across 37 league outings.

This means that Olaru has racked up eight goals and 29 ‘big chances’ created since the start of last season for FCSB. Whereas, Dowell has scored six goals and created six ‘big chances’ in that time.

The talented whiz was once hailed as an “inexhaustible” playmaker by Alex Scout on X, who focuses on Romanian prospects, and the statistics back that up.

He is able to create huge opportunities for his teammates on a regular basis and has the quality to chip in with goals of his own, whilst remaining fit and available for selection.

Therefore, Olaru could be a fantastic signing by Koppen to bolster Clement’s midfield options as a big upgrade on Dowell, whose time in Glasgow has been disappointing so far.

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