Rumour Mill: Oldco Rangers | Ally McCoist | Scott Allan

Dave King is intent on taking Oldco Rangers out of liquidation. Picture: SNS

King aims to take Oldco Rangers out of liquidation

DAVE King has told of his desire to restore Rangers to pre-insolvency status by taking the old company out of its current liquidation process and placing it back in the ownership of Ibrox Stadium and other assets.

King claims it is “emotionally important” to try to reverse some of the damage done since Craig Whyte led the club into administration and then liquidation in 2012. (Various)

Gers targeting Premiership title win next year

DAVE King has revealed that Rangers are already working towards winning the Premiership title next season - with only a portion of the current season out of the way.

King said: “I’m not being arrogant but I think we can prepare for next season in the Premiership. It gives us a lot of time to think about it and get it right.”(The Scotsman)

Deila confident Simunovic can be new van Dijk

RONNY Deila has claimed new £4.5m signing Jozo Simunovic can be Celtic’s new Virgil van Dijk.

Deila said: “Jozo is a modern player. When you buy young players, it takes times, a little bit of time, for them to adapt, but we see him as a big, big prospect.

“So this is a new Virgil van Dijk, someone we can build up to be like that.” (The Scotsman)

Hibs rubbish Dave King’s Allan claim

Hibs have denied Dave King’s claim that the Easter Road club encouraged Rangers to bid for Scott Allan.

The Rangers chairman said: “The way I viewed it differently from Hibs was that the initial approach came from them. They said, ‘We know you’re interested. If you do want to do business with Scott Allan let’s do it quite quickly so we know where we stand’.

“We proceeded to do it quite quickly so we were surprised with the official response of, ‘We won’t sell to Rangers under any circumstances whatsoever’.”

Hibs chief Leeann Dempster issued a one-line rebuttal yesterday, saying: “I took the initial call from Rangers. I can confirm that Mr King’s version of events is not correct.” (Various)

Stubbs plays down Riordan talk

ALAN Stubbs has appealed for people not to read anything into the presence of Derek Riordan at East Mains.

The former player and fans’ favourite has been spotted training with the first team squad this week, but Stubbs says that allowing him to use the facilities does not mean that he is poised to sign him up.

“If Derek comes in and blows the house down and is fantastic then I will have a real decision to make,” acknowledged Stubbs, “but this is not a risk or a gamble and I am just providing Derek with an opportunity to train.” (The Scotsman)

McCoist terminates Gers deal early

RANGERS chairman Dave King has confirmed that the club have agreed a pay-off deal with former manager Ally McCoist – nine months after he quit his post.

A 12-month notice period was triggered when McCoist fell out with the previous regime as his side’s promotion bid faltered. He was placed on gardening leave just hours before an AGM but has continued to pick up his£15,000-a-week salary.

King held talks with McCoist earlier this summer and has now been able to agree a deal to terminate the former striker’s lucrative contract “on commercial terms which are favourable to the club”. (The Scotsman)

Chelsea signed Celtic target Djilobodji after Hoops ‘delay’

CELTIC reportedly missed out on Nantes defender Papy Djilobodji by delaying. He eventually signed for Chelsea for £4 million during the transfer window.

But Djilobodji’s advisor has claimed Celtic’s offer didn’t match Chelsea’s and that any deal was relying on the sale of Virgil van Dijk. (The Sun)

Robbo rips up Botosani deal

EX-Hibs midfielder Scott Robertson has cancelled his contract at Romanian side Botosani after just three months.

The 30-year-old signed a three-year contract with Botosani in June following his release by Hibernian. However, the midfielder played just 65 minutes for the club in four substitute appearances, failing to make a start and is now training with Raith Rovers. (The Scotsman)

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Ex-Hibs winger Danny Galbraith is set to train with Raith Rovers this week after leaving Gillingham

• New Hearts signing Danny Swanson has revealed his mum’s side of the family are all Hearts fans - despite his dad running a Hibs pub

• Malmo boss Age Hareide has tipped Molde to beat Celtic in the Europa League, saying the key to beating the Hoops is outrunning them

• Kilmarnock starlet Greg Kiltie, a Scotland under-19 international, has turned down the offer of a new deal at Rugby Park

• Inverness CT boss John Hughes has said he expects his team to beat Hearts this weekend

• The SPFL has extended its deal with Sky and BT Sports to secure live coverage of 30 Scottish Premiership games and up to six promotion play-off matches until 2020

Rumour Mill: Oldco Rangers | Ally McCoist | Scott Allan | Jozo Simunovic