Ally McCoist could make second swoop for Ryan McGowan in autumn

ALLY McCoist has refused to rule out a fresh bid for Ryan McGowan at the end of the Chinese league season.

• McGowan set to finalise $1.2 million contract with Shengdong Luneng

• Rangers free to sign free agents from 1 September

McGowan is believed to have agreed a one-year deal at Shengdong Luneng after Hearts agreed a six-figure fee with the Chinese team, and McGowan stands to pocket over $1 million from his stint in Eastern China. However, McCoist refused to rule out a second attempt to sign the Australian.

The Rangers manager said: “He’s a good player. Ryan is a player we obviously tried to get earlier.

“He’s like everybody else, we keep a completely open mind and we monitor players who we have been watching and we will continue to do that.

“I would absolutely rule nothing out.”

Rangers can sign free agents from 1 September, so McCoist will be looking to tie up targets on pre-contract deals in the next few weeks.

McCoist said: “There is no progress as yet but we’ve got one or two players we have been looking at and we’ve got on the radar.

“Our chief scout has been keeping us updated but there is nothing to report yet.”

McCoist also revealed that defender Darren Cole could be out for the season with an ankle injury. He said: “The immediate signs are that, unfortunately, it looks as though he will need an operation.

“I don’t want to pre-empt the situation but, if it is an operation, we will do well to see him again this season. It’s a real shame because he has been injured for a while.”