Ryan Kent tells Rangers he’s happy to stay as Leeds set for new bid

The Elland Road club have already seen an initial bid for Kent of £8.5 million, with £1.5m of potential add-ons, flatly rejected by Rangers.

Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa is still keen to pursue his interest in the player and the English Premier League newcomers are expected to return with an increased offer worth around £14m this week.

But contrary to reports in some English outlets which claim Kent has told Rangers he wants to join Leeds, The Scotsman understands the 23-year-old has reassured the Ibrox club he is settled in Glasgow and happy to stay.

Kent’s attitude and response to the situation is gratifying for Rangers manager Steven Gerrard who has made no secret of how pivotal he believes the player is to his hopes of success this season. Rangers chairman Douglas Park and his fellow directors are also understood to be wholly supportive of Gerrard’s determination to hold on to Kent’s services.

Gerrard, however, conceded that any decision on Kent’s future could be taken out of his hands should any club meet Rangers’ valuation of the man they signed on a four-year contract last September in a deal worth £7.5m.

According to Gerrard, Leeds are “nowhere near” that valuation and Kenthas already underlined his importance this season with three goals in the first five league matches.

It remains to be seen whether any second bid would force the Ibrox club’s hand.

Rangers are now likely to be more amenable to any revival of Lille’s interest in Alfredo Morelos, however, after the Colombian striker was axed from the first team squad by Gerrard for Saturday’s 2-0 win over Kilmarnock at Ibrox.

Morelos has clearly been unsettled by the French club’s pursuit of him this summer with Rangers having already rejected an offer of around £16m for the player who has been their leading scorer for the past three years.

Gerrard has expressed his concern at the manner in which Morelos “has had his head turned” and stated it was an “easy” decision to drop him at the weekend.

Lille president Gerard Lopez last week hinted the Ligue 1 club were likely to return with another bid for the 24-year-old and, having invested around £6m to recruit strikers Kemar Roofe and Cedric Itten this summer, Rangers may feel the time has now come to cash in on Morelos.

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