Rangers transfer scouting: The 'summer league' No.6 who can assuage possession problem

We see a jam-packed nine-month window filled with entertainment and sometimes education and a prolonged break in the winter and summer; at least, that’s the schedule we are used to. The summer holds a unique place in the footballing calendar; for the most part, the void created by the absence of competitive action is filled by the frantic nature of the transfer window and all the optimism and excitement accompanying it. In many schools, the underperforming students are forced to make up for lost time during the summer, studying and working whilst their peers enjoy the freedom of the holidays. In European football, many players face a similar fate, playing in 'summer leagues' that flip the traditional footballing calendar on its head for various reasons. Despite summer schooling suggesting some form of disciplinary or results-based deficiencies, the same can’t be said for summer football, as there is a sprawling cast of talented players plying their trade in the summer in nations such as Norway, Sweden, the Baltics and more.

Rangers now appear to be in a state of limited flux, as any new signings depend on the proverbial trimming of the fat. As such, there are no guarantees of any new faces joining the other seven arrivals. Despite this, contingencies should be made in the instance some of that fat is gnawed off in the coming weeks and transfer windows of the near future. With this in mind, let’s look at three players currently playing in European summer leagues who could be of interest to Rangers now or in the future.

Bilal Hussein, AIK

Rangers' turgid first-leg performance against Union Saint-Gilloise exposed a number of chinks in the armour. Perhaps no more apparent than the complete lack of proper arbitrator between the defence and midfield outside of the ageing Steven Davis, as possession failed to bridge the gap between the bank of five and the two ahead of them on several occasions. Recency bias aside, the No.6 position is one of thankfully few holes still gaping in the squad, as Ross Wilson and co have done well filling in the vast majority. The status quo is quantity over quality, with few options providing a holistic solution to the problem, as Davis has the passing range, but not the legs or years in the bank, Glen Kamara has the skill but is better elsewhere. Ryan Jack has a mix of the two but lacks consistent periods of availability.

One individual who could go a long way to filling this hole is AIK’s, Bilal Hussein. Hussein stands at a slim 173cm and maybe 70kg soaking wet. Despite this, Hussein is a good athlete, with an impressive turn of pace over short distances, although he does begin to plateau when those distances are extended. He has good balance and can move laterally sharply, helping him cover the width of the pitch.

If we look at the data, there are some clear insights. First, Hussein is the primary build-up option for a solid AIK side, finding himself above the 90th percentile for both passes played and received per90 versus his peers in comparable leagues. He profiles as an excellent and safe option in this period of play, ranking highly in ball progression, pass security, and creativity. He also provides an above-average attacking threat, a requisite for any Rangers midfielder regardless of the depth of their positioning.

The data suggests that Hussein is a fantastic option in build-up. The Swede has swift feet, which allows him to make quick adjustments based on opposition movement and the availability of runners, akin to Kamara. He’s technically very clean, striking his passes firmly and accurately across all thirds of the pitch. He’s constantly scanning around the pitch in his role as the primary build-up option, which necessities that he is available and open for a pass for the entire 90 minutes. Like all No.6s, Hussein primarily inhabits the bottom of the diamond, this area of the pitch allows him to have the luxury of looking forward the vast majority of the game, which is where he does his best work, acting as a connector between blocks of teammates often needing just a single touch. His “creative” passing game is decent, nothing special, but with upwards of six players ahead of him, that is rarely required of the Swede; regardless, below are two great examples of him breaking the lines and playing in teammates.

Conventional wisdom would suggest Hussein’s physique or lack thereof leaves him disadvantaged out of possession; however, he is able to maintain a net positive influence in defence due to his intelligent movement and a quick burst of speed. Combined, it allows him to pressure the passing lanes and pursue stray balls, whilst he is also very good at staying tight with his opposite number. Although there is nothing, Hussein can do to counteract the physical advantage of opponents should it turn into something reminiscent of a wrestling match, which it often does in Scotland.

Hussein has been subject to much speculation in the past few weeks. For example, stories broke about a month ago, which claimed that a £650k release clause was included in his most recent deal, which, if true, could be an easy avenue to the singing of the summer. After that broke, another story broke of FC Basel having a bid of around £1.1million rejected, which, if true, directly contradicts the earlier assertion of a release clause. Despite this, it’s pretty clear that AIK don't have the leverage to demand an "insane" fee; my guess is that he could be purchased for around £2m. To put it simply, there are few, if any, better ways to spend £2m.

Emil Breivik, Molde

If our slight conundrum at the No.6 is a case of quantity over quality, our situation at No.8 proves a void of both. The absence of a “proper” box-to-box option has been evident for some time now, with both Jack and Joe Aribo doing their best to fill the nagging void but better suited elsewhere. I’ve profiled several options in previous articles from around the globe and at different price points; the next in line for that treatment is Emil Breivik, one of Norway’s most exciting prospects and currently a mainstay for league leaders Molde. Breivik recently turned 22 but only broke into the starting 11 before the turn of the year, after spending time as a backup option the previous season, and before that, excelling in the OBOS-Ligaen with Rauffos.

Breivik passes the data test with flying colours. The Norwegian profiles as an elite creative outlet, excellent dribbler, stable attacking threat, and a very secure and effective ball progressor. His finishing-related metrics need a bit of work, whilst his out-of-possession numbers are just below average, but understandably so given Molde’s possession-dominant system and his penchant for the progressive over the destructive side of the game.

Breivik is physically well equipped to deal with anything on the football pitch. He has a solid posterior chain which helps him when receiving and wrestling for possession, whilst his power translates into his silky yet solid running style, both on and off the ball. He times his off-ball runs very well, often popping up as an outlet on the break or running into the box late to offer another option, often unmarked. Breivik is a safe option in possession. He prefers to play the simple pass in his own half of the pitch but shows off an extensive passing range when closer to goal, providing value both centrally and out-wide. To add to that, Breivik is also a viable corner taker and a capable crosser of the ball. Below is an example of each: first, his ability to play in his fellow teammate with an excellent trivella, and second, a well-timed and executed cross to an incoming teammate for an open shot.

Breivik is a fantastic prospect and player for the here and now, but still has a few things to refine before he traverses up to the top of the food chain. His decision-making is often spotty, preferring to go alone, picking the wrong pass, or taking too long on occasion, it's excusable for now given his age and relative lack of top division football, but it needs to be worked on. Additionally and somewhat connected, he needs to improve in front of goal. He gets into great shooting spots and is afforded ample opportunity to score, evidenced by his incredibly high rank for xG per90, but fails to capitalise, underperforming that metric by 400% and sitting in the bottom half for goals per90.

No player arrives at Rangers the finished product; that’s just fact. Breivik would be an appropriate antidote to our current shortcomings, with serious potential to leave for a significant profit in a few years, satisfying all parties.

Camilo Mena, Valmeira FC

Colombians playing in far-flung parts of Europe have proved a good match in recent years. The Baltic nations certainly aren't known for their football. Still, they have seen some exciting attacking talent migrate from one of Europe's coldest regions to some of its best footballing hubs, with perhaps Camilo Mena, the next incumbent. He was predicted to do so when he was named in The Guardian's 2019 "Next Generation", although he is yet to live up to that billing.

Mena is completely dominating the Latvian Higher Division despite being just 19. This is evident when you look at his data profile above, which sees him rank above the 75th percentile for pass security, creativity, dribbling, finishing, and attacking threat, or all the desired qualities for an inside forward. He’s an incredibly high output attacker who has begun slowly refining and improving his consistency.

What’s immediately apparent with Mena is his speed. He has incredible vertical and lateral acceleration; coupled with his short stride pattern, he looks and is incredibly rapid. He maintains his pace on the ball, often pushing the ball far in front of him and beating out his opponents in a foot race. This isn’t to say he lacks quality on the ball; that’s far from true. He has an array of nice moves but defaults mainly to stepovers and ball rolls to disrupt his opponents. However, he is wasteful as often his feet move quicker than his mind, and he ends up malfunctioning. Mena can play in all three forward positions but is best on the left, where he tends to invert and play close to the penalty box, cutting onto his right foot where possible. When in possession in the final third, Mena’s penchant is to run directly into shooting positions and take aim, but he is a capable but basic creator, playing in well-timed crosses and lay off passes but struggling when the distances extend to anything further than 10 metres. Although saying this, when hitting the byline, Mena is an adept crosser of the ball and often takes corner duties for Valmiera.

Mena is at his best when given space to run towards the goal, coming alive during counterattacks and quick transitions. Below we can see Mena drift to the left in a counter opportunity to create separation.

His teammates plays him in and Mena cuts inside, shifting the ball to his stronger foot.

Having moved outside with the ball, Mena takes a step to solidify his shooting position and then takes aim, finding the bottom right corner just seconds after being released at the halfway line.

Despite limited efficacy in tighter spaces, he can exploit space between defenders with his incredible pace. Below we can see an example of this. Despite the opening between the two centre-backs being so slim, Mena’s pace provides assurance to the passer, as the Colombian has it covered if it is a matter of speed.

Mena drifts inwards and his teammate finds him, he is then able to get a shot off from a tight angle, slotting it to the opposite corner and into the goal.

Mena would be the project of all projects. He needs to work on his finishing, final ball, and limit his wastefulness in possession before he even gets the idea of a cameo at Ibrox. Despite this, he has many of the intangibles to be a successful and predatory winger; he’s quick, intelligent, technically proficient, and a hard worker. Mena is one to monitor, maybe sign and immediately loan somewhere else, or not. Regardless, he is slowly getting back on track to his earlier projection as one of the 80 best players from his birth year.