Glasgow Rangers head coach Philippe Clement and head of recruitment Nils Koppen enjoyed a successful January transfer window as they made three additions to the first-team squad.
Mohammed Diomande, Oscar Cortes, and Fabio Silva were all brought in on initial loan deals to bolster the Belgian head coach's options across the pitch.
Diomande has already produced two goals and one assist, Cortes racked up one goal and two assists before his injury, and Silva has found the back of the net four times.
Clement will now be hoping that they continue to fire in goals and assists to help the Scottish giants to secure more silverware before the end of the season, which could result in them being viewed as successful signings.
Whilst it is easy to look at signings as successes and failures over the years, you can also look at players the club wanted to sign but failed to, and wonder what could have been.
Rangers' interest in Xavi Simons
TEAMtalk reported in December 2021 that Rangers were one of a number of clubs interested in a deal to sign attacking midfielder Xavi Simons from French giants Paris Saint-Germain.
His contract with the Ligue 1 side was due to expire at the end of the season and the Light Blues were seemingly looking to snap him up on a free transfer in the summer.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst – the Gers manager at the time – was 'well aware' of the young whiz due to his connections in the Netherlands, which could have given them an edge over their rivals outside of Holland in negotiations, had it got to that stage.
However, Simons opted to move back to his home country as he signed for Dutch giants PSV on a five-year deal. However, PSG were able to negotiate a buy-back clause as part of their compensation, given that his age meant it could not be a straightforward free transfer.
The Netherlands international hit the ground running with his new club, as he plundered an outstanding 22 goals and 12 assists in 48 appearances in all competitions.
PSV lost to Rangers in the Champions League play-off tie to qualify for the group stages in August but Simons only played 45 minutes over the two legs.
The 20-year-old was on fire in the Eredivisie with a sensational return of 19 goals, eight assists, and 11 'big chances' created in 34 appearances.
Rangers must now wish that they had signed him under van Bronckhorst in 2022 as the Dutch star's value has soared, and he is currently worth more than first-team star Todd Cantwell.
Todd Cantwell's current market valuation
At the time of writing (13/03/2024), Football Transfers has the English attacking midfielder's Expected Transfer Value (xTV) at €4.2m (£3.6m), which is the exact same xTV that Simons had in May 2022 before his move to PSV.
Michael Beale swooped to sign the mercurial talent from English Championship side Norwich City on a permanent deal at the start of last year, and he has been a terrific operator in the final third for the Scottish giants.
As you can see in the table below, Cantwell has provided quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals for the Light Blues in his two seasons at the club so far.
Appearances
16
22
Goals
6
5
Assists
4
3
Big chances created
5
4
Key passes per game
1.3
1.6
Stats via Sofascore
The 26-year-old playmaker has directly contributed with 11 goals and seven assists in 38 Scottish Premiership matches for the Light Blues, which shows that he has the ability to be a difference-maker for the team in the final third.
At the age of 26, Cantwell also has plenty of years left ahead of him to develop and improve as a player to increase his output at the top end of the pitch even further.
Whilst, in isolation, the former Norwich star has been a successful, and impressive, signing by Rangers, some may look at Simons and wonder what could have been had van Bronckhorst snapped him up six months before the Gers signed Cantwell.
Xavi Simons' current market value
At the time of writing (13/03/2024), the Dutch international currently has an xTV of a staggering €43.1m (£36.8m), which means that his value is significantly higher than the current Light Blues attacking midfielder's (£3.6m).
His market value has soared alongside his terrific performances for PSV last season, and his outstanding displays on loan with RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga this term, having been re-signed by PSG and sent to Germany on a temporary basis last summer.
The 20-year-old dynamo has been in fantastic form for Leipzig throughout the 2023/24 campaign, and his current statistics suggest that he would be a big upgrade on Cantwell.
Appearances
24
22
Goals
6
5
Assists
8
3
Big chances created
10
4
Key passes per game
2.4
1.6
As you can see in the table above, Simons has outperformed the Rangers star in a number of key attacking statistics, whilst playing in one of Europe's major leagues, with far more key passes, big chances created, and assists, in only two more appearances.
The Leipzig loanee has also showcased his quality in the Champions League this term with a return of two goals, two assists, and three 'big chances' created in eight outings in the competition. This shows that he has the ability to compete and play at the highest level.
These statistics show why Simons' value has skyrocketed since Rangers failed to sign him under van Bronckhorst, as the talented whiz has excelled in the Netherlands and Germany over the last two seasons.
He has scored and assisted goals at an exceptional rate as an attacking midfielder and is currently worth more than any player within the Gers squad – including Cantwell – at this time.
This suggests that the Glasgow giants had a howler when they were unable to convince the talented dynamo to make the move to Ibrox back in the summer of 2022, when he left PSG, as they must now wish that they had snapped him up.