Rangers close in on Beattie signing as moves to secure Smith continue

WALTER Smith is confident former England striker James Beattie can recapture his optimum form in a Rangers jersey if he completes a move to the Scottish champions.

• Rangers target James Beattie (left) arrives at Ibrox Picture: SNS

Beattie arrived in Glasgow yesterday for talks with Smith after Rangers agreed a fee of around 1.5 million with Stoke City for the 32-year-old.

The Rangers manager, who also confirmed his interest in Portsmouth forward Tommy Smith, is keen to conclude a deal for Beattie in time for the start of his SPL title defence against Kilmarnock at Ibrox tomorrow.

Beattie, who has commanded combined transfer fees of over 14 million during a career in which he has served Blackburn, Southampton, Everton and Sheffield United, has seen his star wane in recent times. Last season, he scored just three goals in 11 starts for Stoke and was involved in a much publicised bust-up with manager Tony Pulis.

But Walter Smith, who sees Beattie as potentially an ideal foil for Kenny Miller in attack for Rangers, has no concerns over the player's ability to thrive in Scottish football.

"We have looked at how he has played previously and what he can bring to us," said Smith. "I believe he can be successful here and kick-start his career which has come to a standstill at Stoke. He has done really well in spells throughout his career but, for whatever reason, he hasn't done that consistently. There is no doubting his quality, though, and hopefully he will enjoy playing for Rangers.

"I would be delighted if he agreed to come here. I would look forward to it, because he would bring a great deal to us. James is an experienced striker and I feel that we need that. You can go with younger players in other areas of the team, but at the Old Firm clubs you need experience up front.

"James has a decent goalscoring record and he also has a good physical presence, which I feel we need in order to complement Kenny Miller. James is also a charismatic character, but we mainly want him because I think he can come in and do a really good job for us."

As Rangers finally close in on completing the purchase of a player for the first time in two years, their interest in Portsmouth's former England under-21 forward Smith appears less than straightforward.

Steve Cotterill, manager of the south coast club who staved off a winding-up order last week, has insisted the 30-year-old, who can operate up front or as a winger, is not for sale. Rangers' understanding of the situation, as expressed by manager Smith, is somewhat different with a fee of around 900,000 believed to have been negotiated for the former Watford player.

"Portsmouth asked us for a fee and we agreed to pay that fee," said Smith, "but as yet we haven't been given permission to speak to the player.The complication is that although we expressed an interest in him about a month ago, Portsmouth's problems regarding administration were not clarified until last Friday at the High Court in London.

"We made a bid on Monday which we were told was acceptable and we're hoping to hear from them shortly. We don't have a big squad at the moment so the fact Tommy can play in a number of positions makes him appealing to us."

Smith insists his pursuit of the two players does not signal an end to Rangers' attempt to sign Croatian international striker Nikica Jelavic from Rapid Vienna. Negotiations with both the player and his club, however, have reached an impasse and Smith admits the move is in danger of collapsing completely.

"We are still interested in Jelavic," he said. "Obviously, our patience is wearing a bit thin due to the problems which have occurred over the last three weeks. We're still looking to progress that one but the longer in goes the more unlikely it becomes. But we haven't given up yet. There are two or three elements which are causing complications and we don't seem to be able to get a resolution to any of them. I would hope we can still do it but we'll need to wait and see. We could possibly sign all three players. It would depend on the outcomes and the eventual costs but it is conceivable that we would get the three of them."

Smith is also reserving judgment on Honduran international forward Georgie Welcome, who has been on trial at the club since last week. Work permit restrictions have prevented Rangers from fielding the 25-year-old in any of their pre-season friendly fixtures but Smith has arranged a closed door game at Murray Park for next Tuesday in which to have a closer look at the player.

"He is still with us and hopefully we will be in a position to make a decision on him after we see him in action next week," said Smith.