Celtic hero names the players he urged Hoops to sign as Rangers scout admits he was priced out of £7m transfer

Scottish giants Celtic and Rangers will return to European action this week as they hope to boost their chances of progressing out of their respective groups.

The Hoops travel to the Metropolitano Stadium to take on Spanish heavyweights Atletico Madrid after a thrilling 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture at Celtic Park.

Celtic sit bottom of Group E with three games to play and are hoping to record their first away win in the competition since September 2017.

Elsewhere, Rangers play host to Sparta Prague in Phillipe Clement’s second European game in charge of the Gers. The reverse fixture was a tightly fought 0-0 draw and Rangers will hope to improve on this outcome in front of the Ibrox faithful.

In the meantime, there are still plenty of transfer news stories - with ex-Celtic man Emilio Izaguirre and a key Rangers scout both making the headlines this week.

Emilio Izaguirre revealed the two players he urged Celtic to sign in the summer

Former Hoops left back Emilio Izaguirre is remembered fondly by the Celtic Park faithful for two spells at the club which saw him win a combined seven league titles, whilst racking up over 200 appearances.

The 37-year-old hung up his boots last year and now works as a sporting director for Honduran side F.C Motagua. However, he still follows his former side from afar and even recommended the signing of winger Luis Palma, as revealed by HITC.

The £3.5m summer arrival has enjoyed a fine start to life at Celtic and showcased his talents with an excellent goal against Atletico Madrid. The 23-year-old’s stock has already risen heavily in recent weeks and he is quickly filling the void left by Jota’s departure.

Palma was just one of three recommended players by Izaguirre, who also identified fellow countrymen Alberth Elis and Anthony Lozano to the Scottish champions.

Elis is a 27-year-old striker who plays for Bordeaux in the second-tier of French football, while Lozano at 30 years of age is the captain of Honduras and he plays his football at Spanish side Getafe.

Speaking to Mundo Deportivo, Izaguirre spoke about the trio he recommended. He said: “I was in March playing a legends match between Celtic and Liverpool. I met Michael (Nicholson, Celtic CEO) and recommended Palma and other players like Elis or Lozano.

“I spoke well about Luis. I told him that they would look at him and that he was a player who could be a benefit to the club.”

Rangers scout reveals that the club missed out on £7m man

Rangers loanee Adallah Sima is beginning to show signs of promise at Ibrox after his arrival from Brighton, but had things worked out differently he could have moved permanently to Glasgow in 2021.

The Senegalese international, who has scored five goals from 11 matches this season, had been on Rangers’ radar for a number of years before his arrival, according to scout Pitor Kasprzak.

Kasprzak told Goal.com: “We remembered him (Sima) from the times of Slavia Prague. But we couldn’t spend that much money on him at the time. He went to Brighton.”

Sima failed to make an appearance for Brighton and struggled during an injury hit spell at Stoke City in the Championship, before scoring five in 34 for Angers in Ligue 1.

Kasprzak describes Sima’s impact at Ibrox as a reward for the efforts made in previous windows.

He explains: “Probably, if it weren’t for the fact that we had him in our database from his time at Slavia and he was stuck in our memory, we wouldn’t have gone for him in the summer, because his name wouldn’t mean too much for us. And now he is one of our best players. This past work has come to fruition, albeit with a delayed start.”

Sima has one more year remaining on his contract at Brighton after his loan deal, which could potentially give Rangers an avenue to sign the player permanently in the summer.