Done deal: Goalscoring defender who wants to play for Super Eagles joins Rangers

With a statement on the official website, Scottish Premiership giants Rangers have confirmed the signing of dual-national centre-back Emmanuel Fernandez.

Seven days after allnigeriasoccer.com exclusively reported that Rangers were in pole position to sign Fernandez from Peterborough United, the Scottish giants have now struck a deal, seeing off competition from French Ligue 1 side Rennes and German club Schalke 04.

Although he is eligible for England's Three Lions, Fernandez is keen on representing the Super Eagles and is in the process of acquiring a Nigerian passport to make that possible.

The 23-year-old ended his association with Peterborough United after putting pen to paper on a four-year contract with Rangers, valid until the end of the 2028-2029 season.

Fernandez, a goalscoring defender, signed for Peterborough United in July 2021 and made 61 appearances across all competitions, finding the net seven times — with five of those goals coming in his final season at the club.

In his first words as a Rangers player, he said: "I am honoured, it is a huge club with a great fanbase and I think I can kickstart my career and have a good journey here.

"I was shocked when I heard about Rangers because it is such a big club but it was the place I wanted to be.

"I haven’t played at this level, there will be a lot of life changes for me, but it is something I want to be part of and I can’t wait to get started."

Fernandez was part of the Posh side that lifted the Vertu Motors Trophy at Wembley earlier this year, following victory over Birmingham City in the final.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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