Rangers appoint PSV's Nils Koppen as new director of football recruitment

Rangers have announced the appointment of Nils Koppen as the club’s new director of football recruitment.

The 38-year-old has been working as head of scouting for Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven and will take up his new role at Ibrox in January.

Koppen will become part of the club’s “Football Board” and play a key role in player trading, contracts and squad planning.

The current board is comprised of: chairman John Bennett, chief executive James Bisgrove; manager Philippe Clement; director of football operations Creag Robertson; director of medical and performance Dr Mark Waller; and academy director Zeb Jacobs

“I am delighted to be joining such a prestigious club like Rangers in what is a crucial role for the club’s forward strategy,” Koppen told the club website.

“The chairman and CEO have both been clear in recent times our player trading model has to function better and on a more regular basis.

“I look forward to working with the scouting team already here at the club to ensure we reach our goals in the coming years.”

Rangers chairman Bennett had highlighted the importance of player recruitment and sales in the club’s recent annual report, saying that consistent successful trading was key to their long-term goals.

“Player trading will always be inherently volatile, yet Rangers must replace sporadic ‘wins’ with systematic success,” Bennett wrote. “It is a given that it all begins with player recruitment.

“This is an area of priority for your board, and we anticipate that the coming months will see a strengthening in the leadership and processes of our football department, specifically with this in mind.”

Rangers’ last report had included the sale of Nathan Patterson to Everton for a then club record fee, and the club also received £4.25m compensation for former manager Steven Gerrard and his backroom staff when they were recruited by Aston Villa.

While the past year has included the significant returns from selling Calvin Bassey and Joe Aribo, subsequent departures of Glen Kamara, Antonio Colak, Fashion Sakala Jnr and Lewis Mayo have not been for comparable sums.

Clement is expected to make additions to the squad in January as he looks to strengthen his side to help progress in domestic and European competition.

Rangers also announced the appointment of Tom Taylor from Brighton and Hove Albion as the club’s new head of performance.