Rangers sign Scotland defender John Souttar in pre-contract deal

Rangers have signed Scotland defender John Souttar in a pre-contract agreement.

The Hearts player will join Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men in the summer after his contract at the Tynecastle club expires.

The 25-year-old scored and kept a clean sheet on his return to international action against Denmark as Scotland clinched a World Cup playoff place with a 2-0 win.

He has signed a four-year-deal at Ibrox.

🆕 #RangersFC are today delighted to announce the signing of John Souttar on a pre-contract agreement from Heart of Midlothian.
— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) January 14, 2022

Rangers confirmed the signing on Friday and sporting director, Ross Wilson, welcomed the news.

He said: “We are really looking forward to John joining Rangers and continuing his development under Gio, our coaching and support staff.

“John is a full Scotland international and has so much potential ahead for the coming years. I have really enjoyed getting to know John across all of our conversations so far and I can see how excited he and his family are to be joining Rangers.

“We are equally excited to welcome John to Ibrox.”

Hearts said in a statement: “The club reiterates that John is an important member of the first-team squad and will remain so until the end of the season unless a significant and satisfactory offer is made during the January transfer window.”