Lewis Ferguson's return to Glasgow Rangers is a story that has been dreamed of for several years since he made a name for himself at Aberdeen.

Being the son of Derek Ferguson and the nephew of Barry Ferguson means that he carries a connection to the Gers that very few professional footballers have, which is why supporters would love to see him back at Ibrox.

The central midfield star, who currently plays for Bologna in the Serie A, came through the academy system with Rangers before they released him in the summer of 2013, aged 14.

Now, the Scottish Premieship giants are hoping to bring him back to Glasgow for a stint in the first-team. They have already held talks with Bologna to discuss a potential deal for the Scotland international.

The Italian side have informed the Gers how much it will take to sign the midfield talent, and it is now down to the club to decide whether or not they want to move forward with a deal.

The underrated reason why Rangers must re-sign Lewis Ferguson

Ferguson is a Scotland international who has made over 100 appearances in the Serie A for Bologna and just played at the World Cup for his country, so it is obvious why he would be an excellent signing for the club from a footballing perspective.

However, the underrated reason why he would be such a good addition to Derek McInnes' squad is the leadership that he would bring to the team in the middle of the park.

The 26-year-old star, who is currently valued at £12m by Transfermarkt, is the current club captain of Bologna and has donned the armband of the Italian side since the 2024/25 campaign.

Rangers released club captain James Tavernier on a free transfer at the end of last month, which means that McInnes and his staff have to decide on a new captain moving forward.

Ferguson's natural support of the club and connection through his family, coupled with the fact he has emerged as a leader for a team in one of Europe's major leagues, suggests that he would be the perfect candidate to take the armband from Tavernier.

However, it is first down to the board to ensure that they can reach an agreement with Bologna to bring the midfielder back to Ibrox, before McInnes starts to think about the possibility of him becoming the captain of the team.

Rangers hit gold on star who is worth more than Lewis Ferguson

Whilst the Gers are looking to right their wrongs over releasing Ferguson when he was 14 only for him to go on to be worth at least £12m, the club have hit the jackpot on a different central midfielder.

In January 2023, Rangers swooped to sign Belgian midfielder Nicolas Raskin from Standard Liege for a modest fee of £1.5m to bolster Michael Beale's squad, with Todd Cantwell arriving from Norwich City in the same window.

In the subsequent years, the 25-year-old has gone on to rack up 13 goals and 23 assists in 145 appearances in all competitions for the Gers, playing for the likes of Beale, Philippe Clement, Barry Ferguson, Russell Martin, and Danny Rohl.

At the time of writing, he is currently playing at the World Cup with Belgium, who are in the last 16 of the tournament, and has largely been a substitute for Rudi Garcia's side.

Whilst he is a substitute at international level, Raskin has established himself as a key star for Rangers in recent seasons, even winning the club's Player of the Year award for the 2024/25 campaign.

As a result of his strong form at Ibrox, the Belgian star is attracting interest from elsewhere in the summer transfer window, with Spanish side Real Betis said to be one of his suitors.

The Light Blues are demanding a fee of £20m to allow the central midfielder to move on from Ibrox, which shows that they have truly hit the jackpot with him, as his value has soared by £18.5m in less than four years.

That valuation also means that he is worth £8m more than Ferguson and could be considered an even bigger talent, given their respective valuations, which is why it would be such a blow to lose the Belgian star.

However, the Scotland international brings value off the pitch with his aforementioned leadership potential at Ibrox, and that is why the Gers selling Raskin to replace him with Ferguson could still be good business in the long run.