Lee McCulloch has been drooling over the prospect of Motherwell ace Jake Hastie heading to Rangers in the summer transfer window with a pre-contract deal reportedly all but done ahead of the attacker’s contract expiring at Fir Park.
According to Football Insider, Hastie, 20, should sign for the Light Blues this week after undergoing a medical with the Glasgow giants.
It is understood that Rangers will owe Motherwell a compensation fee, but McCulloch believes that the Scotland Under-21 international will be worth every penny that is paid by his former club.
“Rangers signing Jake Hastie is not a gamble,” McCulloch said on the Evening Times website. “It is a bit of a no-brainer to be honest and he will go on to be a great bit of business for them in the coming years.”
The former Rangers captain added: “He will prove to be a really good signing and even if they have to pay a few hundred grand, it should be well worth it. It is a cracking deal.
“Hastie still has so much time on his side to improve and grow. He can get better and he will get better through time and experience.”
OPINION
McCulloch is absolutely spot on and Rangers fans should be excited about the arrival of Hastie, who has been in stunning form for Motherwell in the back-end of this season. Since returning to Fir Park after a loan spell at Alloa, the attacker has scored six goals in 13 Scottish Premiership appearances, and some of those goals have been absolute stunners. Hastie has a lot of potential and as McCulloch says, he is worth every penny of that compensation fee that Rangers will have to pay. If Hastie doesn’t make it at Ibrox, what’s the worst that could happen? His transfer value is unlikely to ever drop lower than what the Gers will pay for him in the summer unless they let him run out his contract. Hastie could be a very solid squad player in his first season at Ibrox where he will more than likely be looking to continue his development rather than making a major impact in the starting line-up. Well done Steven Gerrard and Mark Allen for going after this gifted young player.