RANGERS reversed the Ibrox transfer procedure with some style
yesterday when they unloaded unsettled Frenchman Basile Boli to Monaco
in a deal which was worth around #2m to the Glasgow club.
After having splashed out more than #9m on summer imports, manager
Walter Smith sold Boli in a deal which effectively means that Rangers
have brought in Gordan Petric from Dundee United for nothing.
Boli spent most of the season as a misfit in Rangers defence, unhappy
with life in Glasgow, the style of football he had to face in the
premier division, and with his lot as a whole.
Now, Rangers have sent him back to France and while some of the fine
detail has still to be worked out, the Ibrox side must be happy that
this brief episode has ended.
Yesterday Boli said: ''It is tremendous for me to return to France and
to a top club. That is what I have wanted to do throughout the summer. I
wanted to win a championship medal in Scotland and did so.
''Now, I want to win another French championship medal, this time with
Monaco. This is where I will be happy.''
The deal has just beaten the French signing deadline and Boli will now
concentrate on a rebirth of his career in France at domestic and
national levels.
Meanwhile, Russian Oleg Salenko was granted his work permit and can
now play for the Ibrox club.
And, if Rangers reach the Champions League, then Salenko will be
eligible for these matches.
* EVERTON'S hopes of completing the #5m transfer of Andrei Kanchelskis
in advance of tonight's European Cup-winners' Cup registration deadline
appear unlikely to be realised.
Manchester United director and club solicitor Maurice Watkins had
flown out to the Ukraine on Sunday for talks with the winger's former
club, Shaktyor Donetsk, in a bid to reach a compromise over their claims
to a #1.1m cut of the fee.
But Watkins returned to Britain yesterday without any conclusion to
the saga being in sight.
United club spokesman Ken Ramsden explained: ''Maurice had two
meetings with officials at Donetsk on Sunday, but returned because he
felt there was nothing to be gained by staying on.
''The situation has not been resolved at this stage and, although his
meetings with the Ukrainians were amicable, it was felt that the next
moves could be made from home.''
If there is no resolution to the matter, it seems certain that
Kanchelskis -- still officially registered as a United player although
he has made it clear he will not play for the Old Trafford club again --
will not be available to Everton for the first round of their
Cup-winners' Cup campaign next month.
* NAPOLI'S Colombian striker Freddy Rincon signed a three-year
contract with Spanish champions Real Madrid yesterday for an undisclosed
fee.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article