04 July 2006

RANGERS hope to sign Swede Johan Elmander before they leave for South Africa on Saturday.
French midfielder Jeremy Clement is already in Glasgow for a medical before completing a £1.1m move from Lyon.

And Sports Times can reveal Gers are also closing in on Brondby striker Elmander, 25, with a source claiming talks are "advancing well".
Brondby director Per Bjerregaard said: "We haven't received a firm offer as of yet, but there has been contact."

Despite claims Brondby want £4m, Rangers hope to get Elmander for around £3m - with last season's Danish Player of the Year earning £10,000-a-week over four years.

The former Feynoord man, viewed by Paul Le Guen as a summer priority along with Clement, is on holiday but is due to return to training with Brondby tomorrow when he will be advised of the current state of negotiations with the Ibrox club.

Rangers will not pay over the odds for Elmander - as Le Guen said last week - and want an answer from Bronbdy quickly or else they will look elsewhere. Wigan and several Spanish clubs are said to be interested in Elmander. Source - Evening Times

04 July 2006

The Herald also understands Elmander is close to becoming Paul Le Guen's next signing after a productive round of talks. Brondby had valued the Swedish World Cup striker at about £4m but are now willing to accept Rangers' offer of around £2.5m.

Negotiations will continue over the next 48 hours and Rangers are hopeful Elmander can join Clement on their pre-season trip to South Africa which starts on Friday. Source - The Herald

30 June 2006

Rangers manager Paul Le Guen would like to sign Brondby striker Johan Elmander and Lyon midfielder Jeremy Clement by the end of next week.

Le Guen had already made his interest in Clement public, and he has now confirmed that Elmander, who played for Sweden in the World Cup, is a target.

Rangers and Lyon have so far failed to agree a fee for Clement.

"I would like to bring Elmander in also, but it is difficult for the same reasons," he told Rangers' website.

It has been reported that Brondby are looking for in the region of £4m for Elmander, while Rangers are prepared to offer about £2.5m.

Lyon are thought to be asking for £2m for Clement, a price Rangers consider to be excessive, so talks continue.

"It is normal to have discussions like these with the club, so we will wait," added Le Guen.

"It would be better to have both players straight away. Elmander played in the World Cup and he is fit and I know Clement is fit too so they would be able to go with the team to South Africa.

"However the most important thing is to pay the right price."

Rangers leave for a pre-season tour of South Africa on 8 July. Source - BBC Sport

30 June 2006

For Brondby, Johan Elmander could be history by next week. The Swedish World Cup international has been given an extra week off, but when he returns on Wednesday, it may be just to clear out his locker.

Tipsbladet has learned that Brondby has received an enquiry from Glasgow Rangers, and the Scots have asked both the Danish club and Elmander himself to get back to them early next week. Brondby chairman, Per Bjerregaard, will neither confirm nor deny the connection, but will only say the following about a possible transfer of Johan Elmander: "It all depends on whether they have enough money".

With or without Elmander the squad of 26 - including several injured players - that Meulensteen has at his disposal is not the strongest. During his first week at the club, the Dutchman will appraise the situation and then decide whether the squad needs to be strengthened. Source - TIPS-bladet.dk

1 June 2006

RANGERS target Johan Elmander told last night how Swedish team-mate Karl Svensson has been begging him to sign up for the Rangers revolution.

Record Sport revealed yesterday that 25-year-old Brondby striker Elmander, left, is one of the names at the top of Paul Le Guen's summer shopping list.

The news also broke yesterday morning in Sweden where Elmander and Svensson, snapped up by the Frenchman last week on a three-year contract, are preparing for the World Cup finals.

And as Elmander relaxed after another training session with the squad, he told Record Sport how Svensson has already started giving him the hard sell.

The former Feyenoord striker said: "Karl picked up the Swedish papers this morning and read the stories about me and Rangers. He's been talking to me all day and telling me, 'You have to come with me'.

"I think he's trying to put me under a little bit of pressure."

But Elmander would not be pushed into saying whether or not he will agree to become the sixth new signing of Le Guen's rebuilding programme.

Reports in Copenhagen claim the deal is all but completed but we understand talks between both clubs are still at the early stages.

Brondby are demanding a fee in excess of £2.5 million for Denmark's player of the year last season who is also being linked with Wigan, Rennes and Borussia Dortmund.

But Elmander said: "I'm focusing on theWorld Cup at the moment. I'm really happy a club like Rangers is interested in me but I won't be making any decisions just now.

"I know there are a couple of clubs in Europe interested in me and that Rangers are one of them. But I want to concentrate on doing well for the Swedish national team at the World Cup.

"After that I will sit down and think about what I do next.

"It's difficult to say what I will do because I like it very much at Brondby. Of course I also want to move to a bigger club again but I don't know if that is now, after the summer or in three or four years."

Elmander also denied he has held signing talks with Le Guen but said: "I know he's a very good trainer. I think he was at Lyon for three years and won the title three seasons in a row so that tells you how good he is.

"I also know a lot about Rangers because, in Sweden, there is a big interest in both of the Glasgow clubs.

"Also, one of my old friends from Feyenoord, Thomas Buffel, is playing over there so I know quite a lot about the club." Source - Daily Record

31 May 2006

Rangers manager Paul Le Guen wants to sign Brondby hitman Johan Elmander.

The 25-year-old striker, currently with Sweden as he prepares for the World Cup is likely to cost around 2.5 million, reports the Daily Record.

Le Guen hopes to secure his sixth signing since taking over at Ibrox by adding the 6ft 2in striker to his side.

It is understood that talks are still at an early stage with German outfit Borussia Dortmund also keeping an eye on Elmander who netted 13 goals in the Danish top flight last season.

The former Feyenoord player is an understudy to the Swedish strikeforce of former Celtic legend Henrik Larsson and Zlatan Ibrahimovic and is regarded in his home country as a player of huge potential.
Source - Sporting Life

31 May 2006

PAUL LE GUEN hopes to plunder Sweden's World Cup squad for a second time to land the striker being primed to fill Henrik Larsson's golden boots.

Record Sport has learned the Rangers boss has launched a bid to capture Brondby hitman Johan Elmander and hopes to make him his sixth signing of a whirlwind summer shopping spree.

Elmander, 25, is with his country's squad as they prepare for the finals in Germany where he will be understudy to Celtic legend Larsson and Juventus frontman Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

The player is likely to cost around £2.5million and is believed to be keen on joining the Frenchman's revolution at Ibrox.

Elmander is regarded in Sweden as a player of huge potential and is almost certain to leave his Danish club after this summer's big event.

Rangers are already at the front of the queue to sign a player who was once a Feyenoord teammate of Ibrox playmaker Thomas Buffel.

Elmander left Sweden for the Dutch club as a youngster in a £2m deal but failed to make a significant impact in Rotterdam and moved to Brondby for a cutprice fee where his career has been revitalised.

Part of the deal to let him go to Brondby means Feyenoord will pick up a huge cut of any further transfer.

The 6ft 2in striker netted 13 goals in the Danish top flight last season and Le Guen, who has asked chairman David Murray to thrash out a fee, was impressed Speculation was mounting in Stockholm last night that the two clubs are close to an agreement, although Record Sport understands talks are still at an early stage.

Le Guen, who has already snapped up Swede defender Karl Svensson from Gothenburg, sees Elmander as the next piece in his jigsaw.

Germans Borussia Dortmund are also keeping an eye on the situation as they fancy Elmander as a replacement for Jan Koller. Source - Daily Record