Celtic and Rangers thwarted in move for Liverpool defender as reason for double knockback revealed

Glasgow rivals fail in move for same player following impressive loan spell in Scotland

Owen Beck has been recalled by Liverpool following an impressive loan spell at Dunde which attracted the interest of both Celtic and Rangers. (Photo by Ross Parker / SNS Group)

Celtic and Rangers have been thwarted in their attempts to sign Liverpool left-back Owen Beck following his return from an impressive loan spell at Dundee.

Beck spent the first half of the season at Dens Park but was recalled early by the Anfield club due to injuries to Scotland captain Andy Robertson and Konstantinos Tsimakas.

The 21-year-old is now set to be given a chance to impress under Jurgen Klopp in the Reds first-team after earning glowing reviews for his performances on Tayside, which caught the attention of the two Glasgow clubs.

According to The Times, Celtic and Rangers both enquired about bringing the Wales Under-21 international back to Scotland on another loan deal, only to be informed he was not available due to being required for first-team duty in the coming weeks.

Rangers manager Philippe Clement is keen to strengthen the left-back position with uncertainty surrounding the future of both Borna Barisic, who is currently injured and out of contract in the summer, and Ridvan Yilmaz, who joined from Besiktas in a £4m deal 18 months ago but has struggled to hold down a regular first-team place.

Rangers have also been linked with Scotland Under-21 international Josh Doig, the former Hibs full-back who is currently playing in Serie A with Hellas Verona, with reports in Italy suggesting Verona are also keen on Yilmaz, raising the prospect of a possible swap deal involving the two players.

Sam Lammers could also be on his way out of Ibrox in January after reports emerged of interest from clubs in the English Championship and the Netherlands in the 26-year-old Dutch forward, who will be allowed to leave on loan after failing to impress following his £3m from Atalanta in the summer.

Celtic have also been linked with left-backs, including 22-year-old Tiago Araujo, currently with Estoril in Portugal's Primeira Liga, as they seek greater competition for regular starter Greg Taylor than has been forthcoming from Alexandro Bernabei.

Elsewhere, Aberdeen are set to demand a club record fee for star striker Bojan Miovski amid interest from clubs across Europe. The North Macedonia international, who has also been linked with Celtic, has scored 15 goals in 29 appearances this season, having netted 19 times last term for club and country. Miovski has two-and-a-half years left on his current deal and, according to Sky Sports, any club looking to sign the 24-year-old will need to eclipse the £5m club record fee paid by Liverpool for Calvin Ramsay 18 months ago.