The exciting new Rangers signing is already spoken for, as confirmed by a club chief.

Jefte’s potential move to Rangers in the summer is uncertain following Prodromos Petrides’ statement that the player is “already sold” on signing permanently for APOEL.

In an interview with Super Sport FM, the president of the Cypriot club emphasized their intention to convert Jefte’s loan into a permanent deal this summer, indicating that the player is in agreement.

Earlier, it seemed Jefte was heading to Ibrox in January after Rangers reached an agreement with Fluminense, but APOEL’s demand for a matching fee caused the deal to collapse, despite Jefte’s desire for the move.

Although there were reports of a verbal agreement for Philippe Clement to sign Jefte in the summer, Petrides’ recent comments cast doubt on that possibility due to financial constraints.

Petrides explained, “No, it’s not impossible. However, given our current financial situation, we are striving to secure a deal for him to stay. He’s essentially already committed to us.”

Rangers signing from Fluminense off thanks to APOEL again?

Petrides’ acknowledgment that financial constraints are a hurdle suggests that even with convincing the player, Rangers might struggle if they can’t afford him, especially given previous plans for a cash deal.

For Philippe Clement, it would be frustrating if the move for the young left-back falls through due to financial issues, especially after everything seemed set.

Jefte was initially set to replace Ridvan Yilmaz during January, but Yilmaz stayed and is becoming more established at Ibrox.

While Borna Barisic is reportedly set to join Trabzonspor after his Rangers contract ends this summer, delays in Turkey have paused the move. This delay raises questions about how negative developments in pursuing the Fluminense youngster might impact Barisic.

A verbal agreement is tentative and can be broken easily. Unless there’s a need for APOEL’s cooperation, securing a binding future transfer agreement should be possible. Until that happens, the situation remains fluid, leaving room for changes.

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