Did Rangers dodge £12m Benfica signing bullet in the January transfer window?
There was a scenario back in January where David Jurasek, a left defender for Benfica, ended up at Rangers.
The Ibrox side was strongly associated with numerous left-back options in the midst of growing rumors about Ridvan Yilmaz at Ibrox.
In the end, the Turkish international decided to stay at Rangers despite strong interest from Galatasaray, and the Gers are happy he did, as David Jurasek moved to Hoffenheim on loan.
But did Rangers miss out on a chance to get the Czech international star given the events since the January transfer window?
Has David Jurasek’s bullet missed the Rangers?
To put it briefly, most likely. If the Rangers were ever interested, that is.
The connections to David Jurasek, who had joined Benfica from Slavia Prague for approximately £12 million in the summer, vanished almost as fast as they grew moss.
The Brazilian option Jeffe was the left-back that Rangers were interested in this January, but they used cronies in the media to kill the narrative.
However, as Galatasaray failed to meet Rangers’ expectations about Ridvan Yilmaz and an attempt to acquire the APOEL star collapsed, a scheduled winter of transition passed by with the status quo unaltered.
The Benfica left-back would not have played in the Europa League.
Instead, David Jurasek relocated to Hoffenheim, where he has found it difficult to establish himself. The same as when he was in Portugal.
Jurasek has been off the bench in the last three games for Hoffenheim, although he has not yet started a game for the German team.
It comes after a dismal first half-year with Benfica, where the 23-year-old left-back for the Czech Republic was limited to just six league outings.
Rangers have also been pleased with Ridvan Yilmaz’s rise, as he has firmly established himself as Borna Barisic’s left-back substitute.
Rangers’ Round of 16 draw against Benfica in the Europa League implies that Ridvan Yilmaz would not have played if Jurasek had been signed to take his place.
All of this suggests that Rangers are content with how things went in January, but since Borna Barisic’s contract expires in the summer, a left-back change may be on the horizon.
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