Highly rated Rangers teenager Stephen Kelly has agreed the terms of a new contract with the club, it has been confirmed.
The official Rangers youth academy Twitter account revealed on Thursday that the midfielder, 18, has signed a three-year contract that ties him to the club until 2021.
? @RFC_Youth can today announce @stephenkelly_50 and @matthewshiels1 have signed new deals, keeping them with the club until 2021.
READ MORE: https://t.co/bvWRnk6wzg pic.twitter.com/7VMKrfPg0o
— Rangers B & Academy (@RFC_Youth) September 13, 2018
Kelly has impressed in Rangers’ youth set-up in recent seasons and joined the senior squad on their pre-season tour of Spain in the summer.
OPINION
There has been a lot of noise around Kelly in recent times, particularly after his standout performances for the club’s Under-20s last season in which he scored against a host of top sides including Man United, Man City and Bayern Munich as they embarked upon their games programme. Steven Gerrard demonstrated his faith in the teenager by taking him to Spain for pre-season and then naming him in the matchday squad for both Europa League qualifying ties against Maribor last month. The rookie was not called upon to make his senior bow, but will have learned a lot from being in the senior set-up for two key fixtures. Described by Josh Windass as “technically the best young player by a mile” at Ibrox, Kelly has the ability to follow Ross McCrorie from the academy to the first team and establish himself there. Top-level players block his path, but there is a real pathway now from the academy and Kelly can make it if he is committed enough to being a first teamer at one of Britain’s most historic clubs.