Charlie McCann departs Rangers but transfer clause leaves door open for future return

Rangers have sold midfielder Charlie McCann to Forest Green Rovers for an undisclosed fee in a deal that could see the player return to Ibrox in the future.

The 20-year-old, who received his first call-up to the senior Northern Ireland squad last year, joined the Govan side in the summer of 2021 from Manchester United and made his senior breakthrough under Giovanni van Bronckhorst last season. He made eight first-team appearances in total, the most recent as a late substitute in the 2-1 extra-time win over Aberdeen in the Viaplay Cup semi-final at Hampden Park earlier this month.

He has now been transferred to Forest Green with Rangers revealing the deal has a number of clauses including "a significant future sell-on percentage, as well as return options and matching rights on Charlie for the future." Upon joining Rovers, who are currently bottom of League One, McCann said: “It feels great to have signed. I’m delighted to get it over the line and I can’t wait to get started. Hopefully I can start getting minutes under my belt very soon.”

Forest Green Head of Performance and Recruitment, Stevie Grieve, added: “We are delighted to welcome Charlie to the club. He is an absolutely outstanding talent, who we will work with to develop for the future. He has demonstrated maturity and conviction to make the decision to come to Forest Green. We can’t wait to work with him.”