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News
- 34 minutes ago
Fabrizio Romano CONFIRMS Rangers interest in 'the next Virgil van Dijk'
Cameron Smith
- Updated: 15 Jul 2025 14:53 BST
- 6 min read
News
Rangers are reportedly among the clubs interested in signing former Chelsea defender Xavier Mbuyamba, who was previously described as “the next Virgil van Dijk.”
The 23-year-old only has one year remaining on his current deal at Volendam and the Dutch side are open to a sale this summer as he has refused to sign a contract extension.
Current ETV
Xavier Mbuyamba
D (C)
Volendam
Xavier Mbuyamba
D (C)
Volendam
ETV Range
€0.7M - €1.0M
Transfer news expert Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Volendam have set their asking price at just €500,000 for Mbuyamba, with Rangers and Belgian outfit Gent both monitoring his situation.
The former Netherlands U19 international made 36 appearances across all competitions last season, scoring five goals, as Volendam secured promotion back to the Eredivisie by winning the second division title.
Mbuyamba is potentially seen as a direct replacement for Robin Propper, who is set to be sold back to FC Twente after just one year at Rangers, while several unnamed England clubs are also monitoring his situation.
The 23-year-old was dubbed ‘the next Van Dijk’ after leaving Barcelona’s academy to join Chelsea back in 2020, but he failed to break into the first-team fold at Stamford Bridge and he was sold to Volendam in 2022 without making a single senior appearance for the Blues.
Despite his unsuccessful stint in west London, Mbuyamba has impressed since returning to his homeland and Rangers have now earmarked him as a possible centre-back target as they prepare for their first season under new boss Russell Martin.
Rangers’ confirmed summer transfers
Rangers have already completed seven new signings so far this summer, with Oscar Cortes, Thelo Aasgaard, Emmanuel Fernandez, Joe Rothwell, Lyall Cameron, Nasser Djiga (loan) and Max Aarons (loan) all arriving at the club.
Meanwhile, Leon Balogun, Tom Lawrence, Ianis Hagi, Adam Devine and Cole McKinnon have departed Ibrox on free transfers upon the expiration of their contracts.
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