Sources: Rangers open preliminary talks over signing Liverpool target Kevin Mantilla
Rangers are trying to beat the Premier League giants to the signing of Colombian sensation Kevin Mantilla and have opened preliminary talks over a deal, sources have told Football Insider.
The 19-year-old defender is also on the radar of Liverpool after he dazzled at the South American Under-20 Championship earlier this month.
Rangers have held a meeting to discuss the conditions of a potential deal for Mantilla as they lay the foundations for what would be a summer move.
Liverpool have also met with officials to discuss Mantilla, who plays for Colombian club Independiente Santa Fe and is a centre-back who can also operate at right-back.
He could be heading to Europe in the next transfer window after making a big impact for his country in a tournament attended by the world’s top talent spotters.
Top British clubs are targeting top young talent in south America due to the difficulties in signing rising stars from Europe as a result of the Brexit regulations.
Mantilla has played mainly in central defence for his club, with 26 senior appearances already to his name.
He made the starting XI for all nine of the Colombia matches – completing 90 minutes in each of them – at the South American Under-20 Championship, in which they finished third.
It means Colombia, winners Brazil and second-placed Uruguay have qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup and 2023 Pan American Games.
Scouts from around the world were in attendance at the South American U-20 Championships, which is seen as a hotbed of leading youth talent across the globe.
Liverpool are among the elite clubs who see it as a better market now for young players than Europe.
In other news, Sources: Rangers told by Bayern they can agree early Tillman deal