Why Rangers should wrap up a deal for starlet Reagan Thomson

According to Daily Mail (h/t The Scottish Sun), Rangers have had a bid turned down by Queen’s Park in their pursuit of highly-rated midfielder Reagan Thomson, who has caught the in the Scottish League Two this term. 

Premier League outfit Newcastle United, who have also been tracking the 16-year-old at close quarters in recent months, saw a £35,000 bid turned down by the Scottish fourth-tier club and Rangers, too, have been rebuffed in their approach for the teenager. (Daily Mail h/t Scottish Sun)

Thompson, who has already made his mark for Scotland at the U-17 level, is widely regarded as one of the brightest emerging talents across the nation. 

As per the report, Celtic have also been linked with a move for the central midfielder, who has already made a total of nine first-team appearances for Queen’s Park in all competitions over the course of his breakthrough season. 

However, if the recent transfer development is anything to go by, Queen’s Park are trying to play hardball with the potential suitors in their efforts to hold on to the teenage sensation.

Thomson is too young to put pen to paper on professional terms and the fourth-tier outfit would only be entitled to a small compensation fee if he decides to leave for a bigger club in January.

Not a lot is known about Thompson’s style of play, strengths and weaknesses, given that he is just 16 and has only recently burst on to the scene in Scottish League Two.

However, the fact that he is already rubbing shoulders with the big boys in the professional game at such a tender age is indicative of a level of maturity that belies his years.

To put things into perspective, Rangers have put a lot of emphasis on their youth recruitment drive in recent times to improve the academy ranks and it should be an absolute no-brainer for the Gers to make a renewed attempt to sign Reagan Thomson. 

The Ibrox giants are at a risk of facing yet another raid on their youth ranks, with highly-rated winger Kai Kennedy attracting interest from Bayern Munich (h/t Scottish Sun), while 15-year-old defender Leon King has emerged as a target for Chelsea and Man City (h/t Scottish Sun).

Indeed, Rangers need to do everything in their power to keep hold of their prized academy assets but if the worst comes to worst and they end up losing them, bringing in Reagan Thomson could well go a long way towards filling the void. 

The Gers recently grabbed the headlines with a deal for Czech prodigy Krystof Hampl while several highly-rated prospects like Nathan Young-Coombes, Kane Ritchie-Hosler and Umaro Balde have been roped in over the last twelve months to add more quality to the development side. 

Verdict

Rangers boast of several bright emerging talents in their academy but they need to continue to scour the continent for more hidden gems, and Reagan Thomson looks like a player with loads of potential who could well go on to have a big future in the game.

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All in all, Rangers should not make the mistake of dropping their interest in the 16-year-old homegrown prospect, given that they would be left red-faced if he goes on to fulfill his potential at some other club in the future.