Amad Diallo: Rangers forget about Man Utd price tag as nature of discussions revealed

When Giovanni van Bronckhorst was assessing the potential impact Amad Diallo could have on Rangers’ title defence, the monetary value of the Manchester United prodigy was the last thing on his mind.

Amad Diallo (left), pictured in action for Manchester United in their Champions League match against Young Boys last month, is set to make his Rangers debut against Ross County on Saturday. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Expectations surrounding the Ivory Coast international winger are inevitably heightened by the fee, rising to as much as £33 million, which United agreed with Atalanta to secure his signature on a five-year contract 12 months ago.

But when van Bronckhorst met Diallo and his representatives earlier this week, his priority was to establish that he and the exciting 19-year-old were on the same page when it comes to what his loan spell at Ibrox can deliver.

Those discussions left the Rangers manager in no doubt that it is a move which is going to be of significant benefit to all parties involved.

Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst is convinced Amad Diallo will flourish with the Ibrox club during his loan period. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)

“The price tag is there but I don’t think we are looking at his price tag,” said van Bronckhorst. “I’m sure that is not what he thinks about. He is just a young player who wants to play games. You can feel it when you talk to him. The only place he wants to be is on the pitch.

“We talked with him and his agents and really just explained how we are as a club and what kind of environment he will come to as a player.

“That was, for us, easy to do because it is just talking about who we are and for me as a coach to explain the way we played and the way we want to use him in games. That was all part of it.

“You just have to talk and explain who you are and how you play and you hope that your message will come across and that the positive feeling you have is mutual. In this case, it was, so I was very happy that he chose us to play for.”

Diallo, whose arrival helps compensate for the loss of Ianis Hagi after the Romanian playmaker suffered a season-ending knee injury, is set to make his Rangers debut against Ross County in Dingwall on Saturday.

“We are bringing him to the club to be of value to the team so of course he is going to play,” added van Bronckhorst.

“But he has to perform, like any other player in the squad. I’m full of confidence he will do that.

“We were looking to add a player in the front area of the pitch because we lost Ianis for the season.

“I’m happy that we can bring in a player of this quality and I’m sure he will give us a lot of strength in the coming months.

“It was also important for the club he chose to play for this season. When you have a list of potential players you want to bring in, he has the quality I’m using in my team.

“Of course he will also know what kind of system we play. They were all positive talks with him and there is the stature of our club which also excited him.

“That’s why I think it was positive talking and I’m glad we could welcome him to this football club.”

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