FOLLOWING a slow news month in June on the transfer front, the pieces are finally beginning to fit into the jigsaw that is Giovanni van Bronckhorst's Rangers squad.

Tom Lawrence’s arrival on a free transfer was quickly supplemented by the addition of Rabbi Matondo on a four-year deal, with the latter addressing Rangers’ crippling lack of options on the right-wing.

However, the departure of Joe Aribo to Southampton had inevitably left a big void in the midfield department. Although the Nigerian was far from a prolific goalscorer, his qualities were unique: a rare blend of physical supremacy and technical excellence in tight spaces.

That was offset last week when news of Malik Tillman's arrival broke, with the gifted Bayern Munich midfielder arriving on loan with an exclusive option to buy.

Prior to his arrival, Rangers boasted a plethora of midfield options, but they all fell into two distinct categories: behind the ball or ahead of the ball midfielders.

For instance, John Lundstram, Ryan Jack, Glen Kamara and Steven Davis are all at their most comfortable deep receiving off the defence. The former is proficient at spraying passes over longer distances, while the latter trio tend to probe with shorter passes in the centre of the pitch.

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Further ahead, Ianis Hagi, Scott Arfield, Alex Lowry and Lawrence are all dangerous receiving in advanced areas. On the wrong side of 30, Arfield has lost the burst of space in midfield that made him such a dynamic presence in Steven Gerrard’s debut season in 2018/19. Hagi, meanwhile, was trialled as a No.8 under Giovanni van Bronckhorst before his injury last season, but the Romanian lacks the physical traits to carry the ball through congested areas.

Tillman's arrival has mitigated the risk that Rangers were underestimating the creative impact of Aribo’s absence heading into the opening week of the season. 

For instance, the Nigerian was given a greater creative license upon the Dutchman's appointment last season, culminating in his gorgeous touch and finish from Connor Goldson’s diagonal pass against Hearts at Tynecastle last season.

Equally, Aribo could often be seen dropping deeper to carry the ball upfield. Although he wasn’t a box-to-box in the purest sense of the role, there was a concerted effort from Gerrard to improve his all-around midfield game following his arrival from Charlton Athletic in 2019.

History may not look too kindly on the loan capture of Aaron Ramsey from Juventus, but his arrival was fundamentally driven by a need to fill a hole in the squad. Rangers appear to have secured a more sure-fire option to satisfy the midfield requirements, with Tillman having a point to prove to his parent club back in Germany.

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The focus of the recruitment department this summer previously appeared to be centred around Angers midfielder Angelo Fulgini. However, the Frenchman's subsequent move to Mainz in the Bundesliga swiftly extinguished those hopes.

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The desire from the Gers boss to retain the services of Steven Davis, Allan McGregor and Scott Arfield underline his resistance to wholesale changes this summer. The arrival of Tillman offers a direct replacement for Aribo's qualities, albeit without the same level of exposure at first-team level. Van Bronckhorst will hope that greater investment follows in the midfield department if Champions League group stage qualification is secured next month.

Moving quickly – but carefully – to secure Aribo's replacement arguably put the icing on the cake in the first half of the transfer window for Rangers. Calvin Bassey's departure to Ajax provides van Bronckhorst with another question to solve, although he'll be confident the club can flex their muscles as they did to secure Tillman.