Rangers boss Graeme Murty looks set to be presented with a major dilemma as Wigan Athletic prepare a surprise transfer window raid for highly rated youngster Jordan Rossiter.
Record Sport understands the League One high flyers are considering testing Murty’s resolve by slapping in a low ball bid for the 20-year-old midfielder, who was snapped up from Liverpool in a cut price deal worth £250,000 in the summer of 2016.
Rossiter’s capture was billed as a bargain by former manager Mark Warburton who had hoped to build a team around a player who, at that time, was captaining England’s under 19s.
But a catalogue of injuries have reduced Rossiter to a bit part role at the club, making just ten top team appearances in more than 18 months.
Rossiter suffered a calf injury at the start of his first season in Scottish football and spent the next five months on the sidelines before being sent down south for specialist treatment on a long running lower back issue which medics suspected was behind a number of recurring problems.
He returned to action under Pedro Caixinha at the start of this season only to suffer the ignominy of being dumped out of the Europa League qualifiers by minnows Progres Niedercorn.
Rossiter then played in a Betfred Cup thrashing of Dunfermline and also in a league win at Ross County before being forced back onto the treatment table.
But the youngster finally returned to full training yesterday at Auchenhowie, just as Wigan boss Paul Cook is weighing up an offer.
As a lifelong Liverpool fan, Cook has long since been aware of Rossiter’s star potential and believes he might be able to land the player for a relative snip if Murty decides to cut his losses.
A source said: “There has never been any doubt about Jordan’s potential and that’s why this could be a tricky one from a Rangers perspective.
“They’ve quite clearly not been getting value for money where this player is concerned but does Murty risk allowing him to leave only for him to suddenly come good overnight at Wigan?
“If or when Jordan starts delivering on that potential someone is going to have a seriously valuable player on their hands.”
