Derek McInnes insists Max Lowe wants a Pittodrie return next season as Rangers look to hijack a move for the defender.
The Derby County left-back has enjoyed a successful campaign on-loan at Aberdeen and that's sparked interest from Ibrox.
Record Sport exclusively revealed on Friday that Rangers boss Steven Gerrard was eyeing the 22-year-old as part of his summer plans.
But McInnes has revealed he's received positive signals from Lowe and admits he'd love to have him in a red shirt again next term.
He said: "Any players we have spoken to are well aware of my views and intentions here. We’d love to work with Max in the future and he’s expressed his desire to come back.
"Our work to bring in players has been ongoing for some time but you have to be patient. That said we’d like to have some in before we return for pre-season."
Max Lowe a target for Rangers as Steven Gerrard eyes hijacking Aberdeen bid
Meanwhile, McInnes has closed the door on taking the Scotland job following a week of speculation over Alex McLeish's successor.
The Dons boss was revealed as one of the SFA's leading candidates but insists he's not yet ready to give up the day to day buzz of club management.
Pittodrie chief Dave Cormack told Record Sport earlier this week that McInnes would not be leaving for Hampden and raised the prospect of an extended contract in the north east.
But he remained cool on discussing new terms, focusing instead on another daunting summer rebuild with the Dons.
McInnes said: "I see myself as a club manager at this stage of my career and I would like to the Scotland manager at some point but right now, I would miss the day to day involvement of being a club manager.
"I wouldn’t be against sitting down with the chairman about a contract extension but right now our focus will be on the rebuilding of the squad."
