Rangers transfer target Edson Mexer could take in Sunday’s Old Firm game at Ibrox as Steven Gerrard tries to woo the Rennes defender.
The centre-back is suspended for his side’s Ligue 1 clash at home to Guingamp this weekend and is considering a trip to Glasgow for the Light Blues’ showdown with newly-crowned champions Celtic.
Mexer is weighing up the chance to move to Rangers after meeting Gerrard and the next step in a potential move to Scotland could be sampling the Ibrox atmosphere on derby.
Record Sport understands the 30-year-old’s representative Laurent Schmitt is currently in London on business and looking into the possibility of travelling north of the border to meet Mexer for the Celtic clash.
The Mozambique international defender missed Rennes' 2-2 draw away to Tolouse on Sunday with reports suggesting he was left out of the squad by Rennes boss Julien Stephan after news of a meeting with Gerrard broke in the French media.
But we can reveal the stopper’s absence was due to him suffering from flu and he will again be out of action as he serves a one-match ban after going through the French league’s three-caution disciplinary threshold.
Rennes are keen for Mexer to extend his five-year stay in north-west France but the player is almost certain to leave the club when his contract expires next month and a picture has emerged of him posing with Gerrard.
Bordeaux and Nantes are reportedly interested and a source close to the player said: “Edson certainly has options and nothing has been finalised yet.
“But Rangers is a very attractive proposition and the fact Steven Gerrard travelled to Brittany showed how far he was willing to go to make a deal happen.”
With the ball now in Mexer’s court, he could make a return to trip across the English Channel and take his seat in the Ibrox directors' box.
Gerrard also took in an Old Firm derby at Ibrox a month before it emerged he was in talks over the manager’s job and later admitted he was blown away by the atmosphere.
Meanwhile, Kevin Clancy has been appointed as the man in charge of the final meeting of the Glasgow giants and it is the first time he will be the leading official in the fixture.
And the man in the middle will be assisted by Graeme Stewart and Douglas Ross who are running the lines with Craig Thomson named as fourth official.
