Rangers are now said to have agreed a deal to sign Aston Villa star Kosta Nedeljkovic. The Gers have had a difficult start to the season, but there was some reprieve in the Premier Sports Cup over the weekend, with Derek McInnes’s men thrashing St Mirren to land a quarter-final clash with Celtic.

Aside from the cup win, Rangers have failed to win either of their first two league games, while they have also crashed out of the Europa League. McInnes knows he needs to improve things and quickly, but the injuries suffered by Youssef Chermiti, who is going to be out for much of, if not all of, the season, while Tuur Rommens is going to be out for at least a few weeks having picked up a groin issue.

One position McInnes has wanted to strengthen is right-back, with Dujon Sterling and Ross McCrorie the current options, but it looks as though that has now been addressed.

According to The Athletic, Rangers have agreed a deal to sign Villa star Nedeljkovic, who is a highly-rated 20-year-old right-back. Reporter James Tanswell posted on X: “New: #AVFC full-back Kosta Nedeljkovic expected to join Rangers on an initial loan with a £4million obligation to buy. The clause dependent on appearances. Rangers manager Derek McInnes has held talks with 20yo, with Scottish club in contact throughout the summer.”

Nedeljkovic is the second right-back signing for Rangers this summer, with McCrorie having arrived from Bristol City on a price-friendly deal. The newest recruit is an 11-time Serbia international who spent last season with RB Leipzig, but he struggled with injury throughout the campaign. A knee and a back injury meant he only made five Bundesliga appearances.

Rangers signings this summer

• Ivor Pandur
• Vanja Dragojevic
• Olwethu Makhanya
• Daisuke Yokoto
• Ross McCrorie
• James Penrice (loan)
• Dan Neil
• Lawrence Shankland
• Cammy Devlin
• Ben Godfrey (loan)

McInnes wants to add to busy summer

Action Images via Reuters

Rangers have been very busy this summer, already completing 10 new signings, and this one will be the 11th. But amid a disappointing start, McInnes wants even more. He said going into the weekend’s game: “It’s not been the start we wanted, but the intention is still to have the outcome that we want come the end of the season. We’re still working hard towards that and we’ve got money to spend. We’ve got a lot of younger players and what we could do with is just a wee bit of help.

“We need to try and win games as we go along because if you don’t, everything becomes so much more difficult. Everything gets scrutinised. That’s not going to change. The only thing that has to change is getting more winning performances and hopefully we can have that Sunday.”

FIFA’s chief operating officer has been sacked, just weeks after he came out and criticised Gianni Infantino’s failed World Cup sell-off plan. Kevin Lamour’s departure, after holding a high-ranking role in football’s governing body, was confirmed in a statement on Monday night.

The focus on Infantino and FIFA’s handling of the World Cup has been under increased scrutiny since the tournament concluded last month, with Spain dethroning Argentina in a 1-0 win at MetLife Stadium. While controversy was already in the air over Donald Trump’s ability to phone his FIFA chief friend to help rescind USA’s Folarin Balogun’s red card, Infantino’s walls have been closing in even quicker over the last few weeks.

UEFA are among his biggest opponents after Infantino unveiled plans to get rich from World Cup stake sales, with Aleksander Ceferin leading discussions that have prompted major European nations, such as England, to withdraw their written support for him ahead of March’s important election.

And now, with opposition to his leadership continuing to grow, FIFA have sacked a rival within their organisation after a leaked letter to the rest of the governing body revealed their decision. In a statement, a FIFA spokesperson said, as per Sky News:

FIFA Sent Letter To Members After Kevin Lamour’s Exit

REUTERS/Jia Haocheng

Lamour’s exit fell on the same day that Infantino lost the support of the Scottish FA, though many other nations – including Argentina, Mexico, Morocco, and a handful of Arab countries – maintain their support for his leadership.

A letter sent to FIFA vice presidents and council members by Mattias Grafstrom, the FIFA secretary general, was also leaked, which revealed what the governing body had to say to other members about their decision to axe Lamour. The letter says: “Following recent discussions, FIFA and our Chief Operating Officer, Kevin Lamour have agreed to part ways.

It concluded: “I felt it was important that I personally provide you this update and I would like to express my gratitude to Kevin for these contributions and for his work and commitment on behalf of FIFA on a daily basis. I wish Kevin all the best for the future.”

Lamour’s Criticism of Gianni Infantino’s Leadership

REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Infantino faced a revolt after his plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private equity investors. He withdrew the $20bn (15bn) proposal after a furious backlash by global football officials, including UEFA, which warned of a boycott of all FIFA games and events.

Lamour, 45, wrote back in July that staff were “deceived” by Infantino’s lack of openness in planning the sale over recent months and “deserve better than contempt and intimidation”. His statement came hours after Infantino’s senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro resigned and urged other senior FIFA staff to speak out.

The sacked chief operating officer said he had a duty to his colleagues in the statement. “And if that means I lose my job then so be it,” the French official said. “I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”

There’s always a focus on the Premier League‘s ‘big six’ whenever the transfer window opens, as all six clubs look to strengthen their squads. Breaking their transfer records comes as no surprise as they try to ensure they are ready to battle for major honours.

Tottenham Hotspur, in particular, were under pressure to splash the cash this summer after finishing 17th last season. A relegation battle wasn’t on the cards, and Roberto De Zerbi’s transfer chiefs have spent a fortune ensuring they are competing for Europe this time around.

Manchester City have got their checkbook out at the start of the post-Pep Guardiola era and Chelsea are finally turning to experience. Last season’s title winners Arsenal and the dethroned Liverpool are still chasing a new attacker while Manchester United‘s transfer business has gone quiet.

With that said, here is how each member of the Big Six ranks when it comes to wheeling and dealing in this summer’s transfer window.

Ranking Factors

• Money Spent – Overspending or refusing to pay up
• Players Signed – Will their new arrivals make an impact
• Squad preparation – Timing of transfers and if new signings are a good fit

6

Manchester United

Reuters/Anne-Marie Sorvin

Many would have placed Manchester United at the top of this list after Youri Tielemans’ shock transfer. The Aston Villa midfielder’s acquisition came out of nowhere when the club triggered a £35 million release clause.

Tielemans followed Andrey Santos to Old Trafford following a £50m arrival from Chelsea and they could prove to be excellent additions to Michael Carrick’s midfield. But with just days until the Premier League starts, only two new signings are laughable and a slap in the face to Carrick, who sealed Champions League qualification.

United’s decision to wait until late in the window to explore a deal for Newcastle United’s Lewis Hall seems misjudged. It became clear that the Magpies were going to lose several star players, so plotting a move after Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes, and Anthony Gordon had departed is extremely ill-sighted.

5

Liverpool

IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Sam Navarro

Maybe the Anfield chiefs were waiting for Jeff Bezos’ minority share deal to be completed before tackling a squad rebuild, but it has been a quiet summer for Liverpool. That shouldn’t have been the case with Andoni Iraola arriving as Arne Slot’s replacement and clear issues that arose during last season.

The Reds have signed Spanish winger Victor Munoz from Getafe and Ronald Araujo from Barcelona on loan. Other than that, there has been no marquee signing to address Mohamed Salah’s exit.

Bradley Barcola remains a top target, and if they can sign the French winger, that could prove to be a game-changer. While the Merseysiders did break their transfer record twice last summer, a new central midfielder and left-back should have been sorted out.

4

Man City

REUTERS/Chris Radburn

It’s hard to judge Manchester City’s transfer business given that their only first-team addition has been Elliott Anderson. That will change now that Barcelona have agreed on a deal to sign Rodri, which is a massive setback for Enzo Maresca.

Replacing Rodri is an impossible task and City are eyeing LOSC Lille’s Ayyoub Bouaddi. The Moroccan certainly impressed at the World Cup, but he has a long way to go in becoming an elite midfield anchor.

Anderson is undoubtedly one of the most talented midfielders in England but at £116m he is under pressure to reach Declan Rice’s level and put Maresca’s team on his back. It’s mid-table for now as Jeremy Monga is an exciting long-term signing, but there are some glaring issues in the squad.

3

Chelsea

Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge

When nearly every Premier League fan advised BlueCo to target more experience, they didn’t mean to sign two players over the age of 35. That’s not a slight on Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck, but rather a question of why Chelsea’s recruitment staff can never quite figure out how to build a squad ready to compete.

That said, signing Morgan Rogers is an ambitious move that might get Cole Palmer back to his best. At £117m, he has to deliver and bring the form that helped Villa win the Europa League to Stamford Bridge.

Signing Maxence Lacroix is a wise call, and at 26 fits into the age range that the experience factor has been all about. Youth has remained a focus, though, as Marco Palestra, 21, and Valentin Barco, 22, have arrived to give Xabi Alonso options at full-back, while Pep Chavarria has replaced Marc Cuccurella.

2

Tottenham

Action Images via Reuters/Matthew Childs

While you can question the profile of players that Tottenham have decided on, you can’t fault how they’ve gone about a rebuild. The argument that it takes years to refresh a squad is nonsense and the Lilywhites have proven you can overhaul a team in one window.

Six players have been signed thus far for £237 million, including the club-record arrival of Sandro Tonali from Newcastle for £100m. That’s a lot of money but it’s where the market is at, and the Italian has proven himself as one of the best midfielders in the top-flight.

Mateus Fernandes is another huge statement signing at £85m but he’s one of the biggest midfield prospects around. The Andy Robertson signing is a shrewd one, bringing a Premier League winner to North London for free.

The Lilywhites aren’t done there as their plot moves for Savinho and Cody Gakpo. There’s much to like about Gakpo but paying the reported £85m for Savinho would be a massive overpay.

1

Arsenal

Action Images via Reuters/Matthew Childs

Mikel Arteta missed out on Vinicius Junior and Morgan Rogers but Arsenal haven’t needed to make many changes to a squad that won the title. The additions made have been well-thought-out, swooping for Bruno Guimaraes who cost much less than the likes of Tonali and Anderson.

Selling Leandro Trossard raised eyebrows but the Gunners may have found themselves a gem in Christos Tzolis. If Arteta and Andrea Berta can land a world class attacker, they will have enjoyed yet another fantastic transfer window.

The latest name on the North Londoners’ radar is Victor Osimhen, and they have held talks with Galatasaray for the Nigerian. Should they sign the prolific goalscorer, they might just be going one step further in next season’s Champions League.

All fees via Transfermarkt – correct as of 17.08/2026