Clinton Nsiala can be Rangers Calvin Bassey 2.0 as Marco Negri offers inside track on 'gamble worth taking'

Philippe Clement doesn’t have a minute to waste as he continues his Rangers rebuild. But Marco Negri has warned the Ibrox gaffer he’ll have to bide his time with new recruit Clinton Nsiala.

The AC Milan kid has agreed to become Clement’s third signing of the summer following deals for Jefte and Oscar Cortes and will check in once his San Siro deal expires at the end of this month. There will be plenty more to follow as the big Belgian sets about overhauling a squad that once again fell apart under the strain of the title race.

The Ibrox gaffer and recruitment chief Nils Koppen are well aware that their new arrivals will have to hit the ground running, with Gers facing a whopping nine games in the first month of August as they aim for a quick start in the new Premiership campaign and a successful Champions League qualification bid. But former Ibrox ace Negri admits he’d be surprised to see 20-year-old Nsiala featuring heavily for Clement’s new-look line-up in the early stages.

The France youth cap arrives at Ibrox packing plenty of potential but certainly short on top-team experience having never made it off the Milan bench. Patience, though, is a virtue which Negri believes could one day pay major dividends at Ibrox.

The retired poacher - who has previously worked with the Rossoneri’s Academy - told Record Sport: “I know Clinton well. I’ve watch at lot of the AC Milan youth team and I’m always looking around to see which young players are breaking through.

“He’s a centre-back with a very good, modern profile. Very, very aggressive, a good left foot and comfortable on the ball. But he’s very young and he’s only played Under-19s football which is very different to first-team level.

“Of course he has to improve. I believe Philippe Clement speaks a little French having worked with Monaco so hopefully that means the language won’t be a barrier and he can work with Clinton. But this is a player you need to have patience with and wait for him to adjust. There’s a lot of work to be done.

“On the other side, Clinton must realise where he is going because Rangers is not a normal club. He has to know he’s joining a great club but also one with a lot a expectations and games like the Old Firm that are very different to what he will have experienced before.

“He must be ready for that. There’s two sides to this signing. He’s a development player so he needs that time - but on the other hand, no-one gets too much time at Ibrox! You must perform and go step by step. But I’m confident he can be a good signing.”

Nsiala has pedigree at academy level all right. The strapping stopper - who stands a touch under 6ft tall - was a regular in the Milan Under-19s side that made it to the final of the UEFA Youth League last season. But his top-team exposure extends only to the seven Milan games last year in which he was invited to sit among the substitutes.

Negri said: “As a defender, Clinton is very aggressive. He’s strong in the one-v-one situations. He’s not very tall but he is good in the air. There are nice attributes. But the main difficulty is taking that step from youth football to Scottish football.

“I know what the game is like in your country and it’s tough. The style is aggressive with a fast rhythm. In Italy, usually the defenders can take their time and see what is happening. That doesn’t happen in Scotland! But I think it’s an interesting pick by Rangers. If he continues to improve the way he has, in a couple of years’ time it could turn out to be a great signing.

“Now we just have to wait and see what the answer is. In Italy, there is a big, big gap between youth football and Serie A - maybe moving to Scotland can be an easier step to take.”

If signing a player with so little senior experience is a punt, Negri reckons its one worth taking. Clement and the Rangers board will certainly hope it pays out the kind of rewards their gamble on Calvin Bassey generated.

The then Leicester teen joined Gers back in 2020 having never made a single appearance for the Foxes first-team. By the time he left three years later, he’d earned himself a slot in the Europa League team of the year and a hefty signing on fee after winning a £20million move to Ajax.

“The hope of everyone at Ibrox is that Clinton follows the same path as Bassey,” added Negri. “We all know that Rangers are looking for this kind of player that they can buy for cheap, help him improve and become successful at the club, and then if a bigger club with a lot of money comes along, they can sell him and use the money to buy another player.

“So when you can get a player like Clinton for free, then it’s a gamble worth taking. But Rangers have done well to get to him first. There were other Italian clubs looking at Nsiala, so he’s a player of interest.

“Everyone here in Italy knows he can be a cracking player. The board of Milan were very upset that he didn’t sign a new contract. Rangers are looking to do things that have an eye to the future and he is definitely a player for the future.”