Big update on Rangers bid to sign Simpson amid key Wilson news - Ibrox Sources
Rangers are in talks to sign Bournemouth star Jack Simpson on a pre-contract deal, Football Insider has learned.
It emerged earlier on Thursday that the Light Blues have swooped for the centre-back, 24, after his Cardiff City move collapsed earlier in the week.
Ibrox sources have told Football Insider that Rangers are negotiating a deal in which Simpson would sign this month and then arrive on a summer free.
It is understood that Rangers recruitment chief Ross Wilson is close to the defender's agent and that could help smooth a potential deal.
Signing Simpson on a pre-contract would save the Light Blues the significant expense of a hefty six-figure transfer fee.
This site revealed at the start of the week that Cardiff and Bournemouth had agreed a £750,000 fee for the centre-back.
But the deal then collapsed following a U-turn from Simpson, as he had second thoughts over the move.
Simpson is out of contract in the summer and the Cherries were hoping to cash in this month rather than lose him for free.
A graduate of Bournemouth's academy, he has spent his entire career at the Vitality Stadium, apart from a loan spell at AFC Totton.
Football Insider revealed earlier this month that Rangers were in the market for a new defender amid fears one of their current star men will leave at the end of the season.
Simpson has not been a regular for Bournemouth but has played 35 times for their first team and has been capped by England at Under-21 level.
He has made 12 appearances this season, including starts in six of the Cherries' last eight league matches.