Ryan Kent has established himself as a key player for Rangers (Getty Images)
According to the Scottish Sun, Rangers are about to enter talks with Liverpool over a permanent move for winger Ryan Kent.
The 22-year-old Englishman has impressed Gers boss Steven Gerrard on loan at Ibrox, accumulating 5 goals and 6 assists from 31 appearances across all competitions. Kent has established himself as one of the mainstays of Rangers’ attack this term and his consistently impressive displays have convinced the Scottish giants to make his stay permanent.
A product of the Liverpool academy, Kent spent time on loan at Barnsley in the Championship and Freiburg in the Bundesliga before joining Rangers at the start of the ongoing campaign. He made his first-team debut for Liverpool in a FA Cup game a couple of years back but he hasn’t been able to break into the senior team due to stiff competition for places.
Besides his heroics in the Scottish Premiership, Kent impressed for the Gers in the group stages of the UEFA Europa League as well. The English youth international averaged an impressive 4.7 dribbles per game in the Europa League to go along with his pass accuracy percentage of 85.4. Furthermore, he also averaged 2.3 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game, figures which show that he is capable of shouldering defensive responsibilities as well.
In all honesty, Rangers can bag a massive coup if they can actually strike a deal to sign Ryan Kent permanently. The Gers have the likes of Daniel Candeias, Glenn Middleton and Andy Halliday as options down the wide areas but none of them is as talented as the Liverpool academy graduate. They did well to bring in the likes of Steven Davies and Jermain Defoe on loan, but while those moves can only be seen as short-term fixes, Gerrard can build his attack around Kent for years to come if Rangers do manage to make his stay permanent.
Kent, 22, has shown that he is capable of not only delivering the goods in the domestic league but on the European stage as well. Sharpness on and off the ball, quick feet, wonderful close control, intricate first touch and mesmerizing dribbling skills- the youngster has got all the attributes to establish himself as a great at Ibrox. He likes to run at defenders with his pace and aggressiveness, often combining his skills with his acceleration to drive past them and leave them for dead.
While he is not the most physically imposing attacker on the pitch, his low centre-of-gravity actually works in his favour while running at the opposition. In fact, it is due to his short stature that he is able to run with the ball glued to his feet. Kent has also impressed with his end product this season, something which is often found missing amongst young players in the same mould.
His ambidextrous nature allows him to cross the ball with ease from the wide areas and he gets the perfect swerve and elevation on his deliveries into the box more often than not. Furthermore, he always fancies a shot on goal from in and around the penalty area.
To conclude, Kent has already shown enough promise on his loan spell and it is not impossible to see why the Gers would strike gold by making his stay permanent. If they can negotiate a deal with Liverpool, they are likely to reap the rewards for plenty of years to come.