In an effort to strengthen a struggling player trading model, Rangers have turned more and more to South America in recent seasons.
Latin America has historically produced the best football players in the world, and Rangers has signed two Brazilians, Jefte and Danilo.
Rangers have also turned to Colombia with the acquisition of Oscar Cortes, while the Ibrox club has been strongly connected to several players in Argentina this summer.
Although there are high expectations that these players will have a noticeable effect on the team’s first team and financial situation, one South American Ranger is now unlikely to play for the squad ever again.
At Rangers, Jose Cifuentes works. We were promised that Rangers’ acquisition of Ecuadorean midfielder Jose Cifuentes from LAFC last summer would be a game-changer.
After persuading the 25-year-old to join the Gers, Michael Beale was cunning since Cifuentes had recently represented Ecuador in the World Cup in Qatar. Jose Cifuentes was well-known and had been linked to teams like Manchester City and Newcastle United earlier in his career.
There were expectations that he would be the midfield enforcer Rangers have been longing for. However, Rangers failed to adequately account for one factor: the weather.
Switching from the palm trees of Los Angeles to the dull grey of Glasgow is a culture shock in and of itself, even though adjusting to the almost continual scrutiny of life at Ibrox is difficult enough. That’s what Cifu himself said.
In February, Cifuentes stated, “During the six months I was with Rangers, I didn’t experience the sun.” “It never got warm.” Prior to being shipped to Cruzeiro, Brazil, Cifuentes likewise arrived late in the transfer window and failed to contribute to the Rangers squad.
Cifuentes inked a loan-to-buy agreement with Aris Thessaloniki in Greece this summer after that comeback to South America didn’t work out either.
Greece is booming for the Rangers loanee. In the end, Jose Cifuentes has benefited from this move in ways that Rangers supporters will wish his move to Ibrox had.
The midfield player has been a revelation in Greece, leading the country’s overachievers to the top of the Super League with a string of dominant displays.
Even though the season is far from over, Cifuentes’ performance has some Rangers fans wondering whether he might make a comeback. However, in a feature article regarding Jose Cifuentes’s tenure in Europe, Chris Jack and the Rangers Review seem to have disproved that notion.
According to the source, “in all likelihood, Cifu has kicked his last ball for Rangers,” confirming that Aris has a buy option on the loan that is estimated to be €5 million (£4.2 million).
Jack adds that Cifuentes “may well come to the attention of other interested parties” and asserts that Rangers spent £1.2 million to get the midfield player the previous season.
The journalist adds that this price does not include “six-figure” agent fees, but if the rumours about the player’s option are true, Rangers may make about £3 million.
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