Scottish Premiership giants Glasgow Rangers are refusing to take no for an answer in their pursuit of Graham Dorrans - with fresh reports of a third improved offer for the City midfielder on Thursday.
Every Norwich City summer has a transfer window saga – and at the moment that threatens to be Dorrans’ protracted speculation linking him with Glasgow.
The Daily Mail report a third offer has now been lodged, after two bids believed to be £700,000 and closer to £1m fell short of the Canaries’ £1.5m valuation.
Pedro Caixinha sees the 30-year-old as a key part of his new-look Gers midfield next season and it’s understood the player is keen on a move to Ibrox.
In truth the rumours first started long before the end of last season, as the Old Firm giants tried to get their preparations under way early – given they have a European football return that starts with Europa League qualifying in less than a fortnight.
Since then we’ve had reports in the press of several bids, each higher than the last and each rejected by the Canaries.
Generally the noise has been coming from north of the border, where Rangers are desperate to take the former West Brom midfielder home.
We’ve even had leaked pictures of Dorrans as a child in full Gers kit, posing inside Ibrox, just to emphasise the point – and a point not to be disputed. It is understood Dorrans would jump at the chance to turn out for the blue half of a truly fierce football rivalry.
The protracted nature of the speculation so far may seem strange, given Norwich are willing to sell their £4m 2015 signing – one they sorted a new three-year deal for, less than 12 months ago.
At a time when City need to recoup to rebuild, Dorrans may well be part of the initial sacrifice – but what’s becoming clear is it won’t happen for the sake of it.
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At this point it’s probably worth remembering that with City head coach Daniel Farke’s love for possession and with other potential targets for sale, Norwich may not mind if Rangers failed to get anywhere near seven figures and Dorrans stayed on – whether he wanted to stay or not.
Likewise, Rangers may soon start shuddering at the thought of having to pay well beyond their means to land such a public target – or ultimately missing out.
For now the clock is ticking much more quickly for new Rangers boss Pedro Caixinha, and it all bodes well for City getting closer to what they want.
• For the latest Norwich City news and opinion follow Michael Bailey on Twitter @michaeljbailey and Facebook @mbjourno
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