Rangers without number of players for Kilmarnock trip - fresh injury, Sakala transfer talks, call on Cifuentes involvement

Fashion Sakala is in talks with a Saudi Arabian club about leaving Rangers.

The 26-year-old Zambia international, who signed from KV Oostende in 2021, will not be in the Light Blues squad for the game against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. Gers boss Michael Beale said: “Fashion won’t be involved tomorrow because he is away having discussions. He’s obviously talking to one of the Saudi clubs. He is a boy and a player that I have a fantastic relationship with but sometimes in football these things happen, an opportunity comes up and you discuss it with the player and from there something can happen. So he is away having talks, there is nothing confirmed either way but he won’t be with the squad tomorrow.”

On Thursday, Rangers signed 24-year-old Ecuador midfielder Jose Cifuentes from Los Angeles FC on a four-year deal to become Beale’s ninth summer signing. Kieran Dowell, Dujon Sterling, Jack Butland, Sam Lammers, Abdallah Sima, Cyriel Dessers, Leon Balogun and Danilo have also been recruited amid a squad overhaul. Some of those who have departed the club include Allan McGregor, Ryan Kent, Alfredo Morelos, Malik Tillman, Antonio Colak, Filip Helander and Scott Arfield. Beale declared himself “extremely satisfied” with the backing he got from the board but stressed that financial prudence underpinned his revamp.

He said: “As we stand now we are no further ahead in our wage structure than what we were. What we have been able to do is maybe re-energise the squad with motivation and quality. Our squad size will be slightly smaller and our budget will remain the same by the end of the window so I am really happy. The idea was to equip the squad for the coming years, not just for one window to the next.

“We have recruited a strong squad with good balance and it is important that this team grows together and I am delighted with the support of everyone at the club because of the speed we moved at. I am extremely satisfied (with backing). I sat here a few months ago when there was a lot of questions coming this way. I was very calm because I knew the plan. It was about executing it. I have been very fortunate to be at the very front of that with James Bisgrove (chief executive) and been able to act very quickly.

“So I felt a lot of freedom in terms of being able to recruit the players. I think by the end of the window you will find our net spend will be very small. It wasn’t about asking the board for finance, it was about being able to reshape the squad and I was able to do that.”

Beale has a few absentees for the trip to Ayrshire. He said: “Unfortunately we lost Ridvan (Yilmaz) today to a slight strain, we don’t know if that will be days or a couple of weeks. We are hoping we caught it early. Ben Davies is out with a slight issue. Connor Goldson comes back into the squad. Tom Lawrence is a couple of days away with a knee problem Jose trained today with the group and goes straight into the squad tomorrow. I am expecting a really tough game at Kilmarnock.”