Ianis Hagi jets into Scotland ahead of Rangers switch

Rangers are close to completing a deal for Romanian starlet Ianis Hagi, who has arrived in Scotland to hold talks with the Ibrox club.

Genk and Romania Forward Ianis Hagi arrives at Edinburgh Airport ahead of a proposed move to Rangers. Picture: SNS Group

The 21-year-old, son of football legend Gheorghe Hagi, is reported to have agreed a loan move from Belgian side Genk for the rest of the season.

Having only started seven games this campaign, the playmaker is keen to get minutes with the hope of playing for Romania at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Signed by Genk for a reported €8 million in the summer, penning a five-year-deal, things haven't gone as well as he had hoped.

Hagi, who has 10 caps for Romania, has had two spells at Viitorul Constanta, sandwiching two years at Fiorentina.

It was at Viitorul, who were founded just 11 years ago, where he made his name having come through their youth system which is named after Gheorghe Hagi.

Not only did he make his debut for the first-team aged just 16, he was also handed the captaincy before his 17th birthday.

His rise to stardom prompted Firoentina to pay a fee of around €2 million, but he didn't make the breakthrough, returning to Viitorul, who are managed by his father.

After further impressive performances in his homeland, Genk fought of substantial competition to sign him in the summer with reports of a €15 million offer from Russia.

He was awarded Romanian young player of the year in 2015, while he made the league's team of the year in 2017-2018 and 2018-2019.

Earlier in his career he was named as one of the 50 best young footballers in the world born in 1998 by The Guardian.