THE future of Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos remains unclear given the Colombian is now in the final year of his contract.

It’s fair to say El Bufalo has been one of the most delicious bits of business the Ibrox club has ever carried out given he cost a mere £1m five years ago. The 26-year-old has been a revelation since arriving from HJK Helsinki and is rightly hero-worshipped by the Rangers support having broken Ally McCoist’s European goalscoring record.

But, as he enters the last 12 months of his current deal, it has sparked debate amongst football pundits as to what he’s worth and at what level Rangers should look to cash in. Former striker Kenny Miller has suggested the best the club are likely to get for their talisman, should he depart this summer.

When asked on the Go Radio Football Show about Sevilla’s reported £7m offer [a bid that was never actually made], Miller said: "I don't think they will be happy with that, but that is probably the maximum they are going to get. If he can score the goals that get Rangers to the Champions League, then absolutely keep him, but there is no guarantee of that.

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"I firmly believe that Alfredo holds all the cards. I believe he loves it here in Glasgow and scoring in front of that Ibrox crowd. I don't think staying for another year would be a big drama for him. He is going to be playing, and anybody who comes in has to take the shirt off his back."

We need to get real. Alfredo Morelos is going nowhere for that amount and the Rangers Review understands the club will not countenance such an offer. The benefits of keeping the player and the risk of losing him for nothing next year far outweigh offloading him now for such a paltry transfer fee. It's also the precedent such a low-ball departure would set could set off a chain reaction and drive down value in other deals. 

Morelos' season-ending injury in April was a hammer blow to Rangers' title chances and despite heroically reaching the Europa League final without him, you can’t help but feel the outcome in Seville may have been different had he been leading the line against Frankfurt. There has been an over-reliance on him at times and, domestically, he isn’t prolific enough but he is a major part of this team and any sort of replacement is going to cost eight figures and then some. Therefore, it’s vital the club and the player come to an agreement about extending his stay in Govan. There will come a point in time when this marriage made in heaven will come to an end but when it does, Rangers should be heavily compensated.

If Morelos wishes to seek pastures new and refuses to pen an extension then it’s important not to simply accept any old offers that may come their way. Remember HJK Helsinki have a 10% sell-on clause so that has to be factored in too.

It’s a big few weeks ahead for Ross Wilson and a number of key players who have entered the final year of their contracts. As well as Morelos, Joe Aribo and Ryan Kent need their futures clarified and they both will also carry hefty price tags.

Should all three depart this summer, Rangers should be seeking at least £30m in total and given the potential prize money on offer with the Champions League qualifiers just around the corner it may just be worthwhile holding on to their key men for what will be four mammoth ties for the football club financially.

This piece is an extract from today’s Rangers Insider newsletter, which is emailed out at 4pm every weekday with a round-up of the day's top stories and exclusive analysis from the Rangers Review team.

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