Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard has told his new bosses that he is interested in signing several players from his former club, Rangers.
Gerrard left Ibrox to replace Dean Smith at Villa, bringing all of his backroom staff with him. Now, he is targeting further reunions with some of his ex-players.
Sources close to both clubs have confirmed to 90min that January approaches are expected. Gerrard remains respectful of Rangers and does not want to damage that relationship, but that will not stop him making a move for some of his former charges.
He believes up to half-a-dozen of his former starting XI are capable of playing in the Premier League. For now, his main targets are highly-rated full-back Nathan Patterson and Finnish international midfielder Glen Kamara.
Ryan Kent and Borna Barisic are also in his thinking, but Rangers will not allow their first-team squad to be decimated in January.
Gerrard is currently assessing his Villa players, but he already believes pursuing Patterson and Kamara should be amongst the club's transfer priorities.
He also believes that if the Villans want to land Patterson, then they need to tie up a deal in January as some of Europe's elite are now pursuing the 20-year-old.
We previously revealed that Manchester United had joined Everton in the chase for the youngster, and the Red Devils even considered a bid for him late in the summer after failing to get Kieran Trippier.
Now we can confirm that some of the continent's top clubs have also been watching Patterson this season, including Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint Germain.
The player is a huge fan of Gerrard after he gave him his debut at Ibrox and he would find it hard to reject linking up again. The same goes for Kamara, who has emerged as a real talent under the new Villa boss.
Kamara signed a long-term deal this summer, but Gerrard believes the former Arsenal man can make a big impact - along with Patterson. Villa were already aware of the midfielder's talents prior to their new boss' arrival, having scouted him intently over the summer.
It would take more than £30m to land Kamara and Patterson, but Gerrard has told Villa not to miss out on either player, as he believes both would be attainable in January.
This article was originally published on 90min as Steven Gerrard ready to raid Rangers in January transfer window.
Source: www.90min.com