'Deal off' - Why Rangers have pulled out of their move to sign Jens Hjerto-Dahl
Rangers have withdrawn from the race to sign Tromso midfielder Jens-Hjerto Dahl as they remained a way off in negotiations.
The 20-year-old has featured highly on Derek McInnes' list of transfer targets this summer as he aims to bolster his midfield options with young talents.
However, the Ibrox club saw a £5million rejected earlier this summer and have decided to walk away from negotiations, opening the door for other interested clubs to swoop.
As I revealed on the latest edition of Football Insider's Transfer Insider podcast, Tromso's asking price of £8.5million was seen as too steep for Rangers to afford.
Rangers had been extremely keen on Hjerto-Dahl since last summer and had scouts tracking his performances in the Norwegian Eliteserien after it began again in March.
However, McInnes' side are now prepared to assess other midfield targets, having pulled out of the race to sign the Tromso star despite their long-term interest.
What was Rangers' opening bid for Hjerto-Dahl?
Football Insider revealed on 10 July that Rangers were pushing to sign Hjerto-Dahl after submitting an opening bid of around £5million in hopes of getting a deal done.
However, that offer was swiftly rejected, with Tromso making it clear that the midfielder would not be sold for less than their asking price, which is out of Ranger's reach.
As a result, they have withdrawn their interest in the midfielder, while there were concerns that other clubs are better placed to beat them to the deal.
Speaking on the Transfer Insider podcast, I explained: "This deal is off now. Rangers have withdrawn from the race for Hjerto-Dahl.
"He was a top target for them in this summer transfer window, and they had a bid rejected for him of around £5million earlier in the window.
"But Tromso have been holding out for a high fee of around £8.5million which Rangers were never going to get to, so that interest has cooled and they are out of the race for Hjerto-Dahl.
"So yeah, I think Rangers now are looking at other targets now that they've decided to pull the plug on a move for Hjerto-Dahl."
Why do Rangers want to sign a new midfielder?
Luckily for Rangers, Hjerto-Dahl is not the only midfielder who they have been keeping tabs on in their efforts to strengthen their squad ahead of the new season.
Their pursuit of a new midfield addition comes amid concerns about their current options, with clubs across Europe keen to lure them away after a dissappointing season.
Football Insider revealed on 19 July that Nicolas Raskin is eyeing a move away from Rangers and hopes to land a big-money move to a top European league.
This comes following an imperssive World Cup campaign with Belgium, where he played a key role in their success and earned high praise from pundits and teammates.
The Belgium international is under contract at Ibrox until 2028, placing the club in a strong position to dictate his future, but it will be hard to prevent his exit this summer.