Glasgow Rangers supporters must be thinking that the club have accidentally signed Ronaldo Nazario after watching Lawrence Shankland since his move to Ibrox.

The 30-year-old centre-forward joined the Light Blues from Hearts on a permanent deal at the end of last month and has been on fire for Scotland since then.

In his last two appearances for Steve Clarke's side, the former Jam Tarts captain has scored three goals and provided one assist against Curaçao and Bolivia in the World Cup warm-up games.

The new Rangers number nine is now one of the most in-form centre-forwards heading into the World Cup and will be hoping to make his mark in the major tournament before linking up with Danny Rohl's side in pre-season.

After scoring 16 goals in the Scottish Premiership for Hearts this season, Shankland was already due to join the Gers in red-hot form, but his performances for Scotland have been a cherry on top of the cake.

Rangers considering move for Premier League forward

The Scotland international, who produced a goal and an assist against Bolivia on Saturday, will not be the last player to join Rangers before the end of the transfer window.

In fact, the Scottish giants are already reportedly looking at a player who could arrive as the perfect signing to play alongside Shankland at Ibrox next season.

According to journalist Alan Nixon, via his Patreon, Glasgow Rangers are one of the teams in the race to sign Leeds United attacker Joe Gelhardt in the upcoming summer transfer window.

The reporter claims that Hull City are hoping to bring him back on a permanent deal after he helped them to earn promotion to the Premier League as a loan player in the 2025/26 campaign, winning the play-offs in the Championship.

Rangers, however, are also considering a move to sign the English forward and have been keeping tabs on his situation at Elland Road, ready to provide the Tigers with competition for his signature.

Nixon adds that the striker is set to hold talks with Leeds about his future in West Yorkshire, and they may decide to cash in on him because he only has one year left to run on his current contract, opening the door for Rangers and Hull to swoop.

Previous reports have outlined it could take around £5m to prise him away from Elland Road.

Why Lawrence Shankland would love Joe Gelhardt at Rangers

The club must push to beat the Tigers to the Premier League forward because he would be the perfect signing to complement Shankland at the top end of the pitch next season.

Rohl has shown a willingness to adapt and change formations regularly during his time at Ibrox, but the German often favoured a 4-2-2-2 set-up towards the end of the 2025/26 season.

Shankland thrived at Hearts as part of a front two with Claudio Braga, a smaller and more nimble player who could play off the Scottish forward, and Gelhardt could be a terrific partner for him.

The 24-year-old often played as a second striker behind Oli McBurnie for Hull and delivered an impressive return of 15 goals in the Championship, outperforming his xG by almost four goals.

Gelhardt, who was once described as a "wrecking ball" by pundit Jamie Redknapp, stands at 5 foot 9 and uses his mobility, movement, and speed to generate chances for himself, running off the back of more physical players who can hold the ball up.

Shankland ranked within the top 18% of strikers in the Premiership for duels won (98) and the top 25% for aerial duels won (47) in the 2025/26 campaign, which illustrates the impressive level of physicality that he can bring to the team in the centre-forward position.

The Scotland international can be the focal point for Rangers, using his strength and size to hold the ball up and bring others into play, whilst Gelhardt can operate around Shankland and look to latch on to any flick-ons and passes.

Whereas, Youssef Chermiti is closer to Shankland in style than Gelhardt and a front two of him and the former Hearts captain could be too similar, as they both look to engage in duels and are not players who make constant runs off the last line.

Signing Gelhardt, therefore, should be a big priority for the Light Blues because Rohl's target forwards, Chermiti and Shankland, would both love to play alongside a player like him in a front two at Ibrox next season.