‘Best decision’: £1.2m man explains why he did not leave Rangers for English or Turkish club

‘Best decision’: £1.2m

man explains why he did

not leave Rangers for

English or Turkish club

‘Best decision’: £1.2m man explains why

he did not leave Rangers for English or

Turkish club

Jose Cifuentes acknowledges that before

completing his transfer from Scottish

Premiership leaders Rangers to Cruzeiro

this month, he received proposals from

teams in Russia, Turkey, and England.

Mohamed Diomande has already made

significantly more of an impact in just

five games in Scotland’s top division than

his successor did in the first half of the

current campaign. Jose Cifuentes failed

not score in his 20 Rangers games,

despite having a good goalscoring record

in the Major League Soccer (MLS) with

LAFC. Granted, a lot of those

appearances were in an unfitting deep-

lying role.

Diomande, who was brought in from

Nordsjaelland to take over a position that

Cifuentes found difficult to claim, has

already scored twice. He opened

Saturday’s 5-0 thumping of Hearts with a

fantastic strike that flew into the far

corner.

Furthermore, Diomande’s arrival and his

quick impact make it seem doubtful that

Cifuentes will have much of a future

under a manager in Philippe Clement,

who has consistently shown doubts

about his abilities. Cifuentes’ Ibrox

contract has an option-to-buy clause

worth an estimated £4.5 million.

Has Jose Cifuentes played for the

Rangers in his last game?

A few weeks ago, Cifuentes went on loan

to Cruzeiro, with a permanent clause in

his own contract.

The Ecuadorian international gives an

explanation for his choice, stating that

family concerns played a major, if not

exclusive, role in his decision to return to

South America over a number of other

choices.

Two Russian teams expressed interest in

signing me. But it was something that

could not be done because of the ongoing

battle there, Cifuentes tells Globo

Esporte. Certain American and European

teams were unable to get funding from

Russia.

“The English Championship has a team

from Turkey on it.

Theoretically, it would last for five

months. It would therefore be

problematic to move my family from

their current home to a new one. I’m

here because I had to make the best

choice.

 

Mohamed Diomande sustains

Rangers’ dominance

Last Saturday, Cifuentes finally made his

Cruzeiro debut, entering the game for

the final 30 minutes of a 2-0 victory off

the bench. The exact cost Cruzeiro would

have to pay to secure the 24-year-old on

a permanent basis is still unknown,

despite Rangers having spent £1.2

million to bring the former America de

Quito player to Ibrox.

“I’m in good shape,” Cifuentes continues,

happy to be back in sunny South

America after feeling the “cold” of

Glasgow.

“I work and communicate with the

individuals in charge of my physical

performance every day in an effort to get

better. I also believe that I’m adapting

well. My teammates seems to have

welcomed me and are working rapidly to

facilitate my assimilation.

Rangers maintained their lead in the

Premiership standings on

Wednesdaythanks to another strong

performance from Diomande in the

team’s 2-1 comeback victory over

Kilmarnock.

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