SPL: Van Bronckhorst focused on Rangers talks

Rangers midfielder Giovanni van Bronckhorst maintains he is still in negotiations with Rangers despite the intense speculation concerning a move top Chelsea.

The West London club insist they have no immediate plans to increase their offer for the Dutch international after an initial bid was rejected by the Ibrox club.

The Blues are interested in van Bronckhorst and have made a formal bid, but they do not appear to be willing to meet the estimated current price tag of about £10million.

But, although van Bronckhorst admits that he is flattered by the interest, he is still talking to the Ibrox club.

‘‘It (the situation) really hasn’t changed a lot since the last time I talked about my future. Right now I’m still a Rangers player,’’ van Bronckhorst told icons.com.

‘‘Negotiations are still going on with Rangers, I haven’t signed any new deal yet, and until the talks with Rangers come to an end, it’s impossible to say what will happen.

‘‘It’s always nice, and flattering, to be linked with a club like Chelsea. They are one of the biggest English teams and have a number of great players.

‘‘If they are interested in me, that is a compliment. Right now, I’m still talking to Rangers, and that is the immediate situation.’’

Chelsea managing director Hutchinson also rejected reports in Scotland that the Stamford Bridge outfit had agreed personal terms with the midfielder, which could effectively have constituted an illegal approach.

‘‘There is no truth in the reports that we have agreed a deal with him,’’ said Hutchinson.

‘‘We did make an inquiry to Rangers and I spoke to their chairman David Murray, but he did not accept the bid that I made and that’s the end of it.

‘‘There are no plans to resurrect it at this stage.’’

Murray had hinted that several leading players could be leaving Ibrox this summer, but insisted that no deal had yet been done for van Bronckhorst.

‘‘We had an offer from Chelsea for ‘Gio’ some time ago but we have not heard anything from them since,’’ he told the Daily Record.

‘‘Arsenal also made an inquiry a while back but have not followed that up. If Giovanni is to leave, then someone will have to make a bid which is acceptable to us.’’

Chelsea are looking to boost their midfield options, especially after reluctantly accepting a transfer request from Gustavo Poyet.

But Van Bronckhorst is not their only potential target as the club continue to monitor the situations regarding Barcelona midfielder Emmanuel Petit, who is in London for David Seaman’s testimonial, and Frank Lampard.

Chelsea certainly stuck firm on their valuation of Gareth Southgate last summer and refused to sign him when Aston Villa demanded about £10million.

Van Bronckhorst nevertheless has only one year left on his current contract and, unless higher bids come in, there is a possibility that Chelsea’s waiting game could pay off as the price may come down.