Rangers goalkeeper Cammy Bell has made a plea to Ibrox manager Mark Warburton to allow him to join Aberdeen on loan.
The Dons made an approach for the former Kilmarnock goalkeeper on Monday with Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes eager to find a swift replacement for Danny Ward, who was recalled by Premier League club Liverpool on Sunday.
Despite announcing last week he was willing to allow the player to leave on loan, Warburton has rejected Aberdeen’s advances for 29-year-old Bell, who missed the first half of the season as he recovered from knee surgery.
Warburton’s decision has frustrated Bell, who viewed the short-term move to Pittodrie as the ideal chance to resume playing after finding him third choice at Ibrox behind Wes Foderingham and Maciej Gostomski.
Bell took matters into his own hands yesterday by telling his manager he wants to join the Dons for the rest of the season, believing the chance to compete with Scott Brown for the goalkeeper’s jersey will ensure he returns to Ibrox ready to challenge for the number one position in the summer.
Aberdeen manager McInnes is willing to be patient in his pursuit of the Rangers goalkeeper and hopes Bell’s plea will convince the Light Blues to change their stance and sanction a loan move in time for Sunday’s Scottish Premiership game at Ross County.
Following Ward’s return to Anfield the Dons manager’s only senior goalkeeper is Brown, who is out of contract in the summer.
He still has the option to recall Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Danny Rogers from his season’s loan at Championship side Falkirk, but is keen to let the 21-year-old, whose contract is also up in the summer, to see out the campaign with the Bairns.
Rogers has established himself as the first-choice goalkeeper under Peter Houston, playing his part in the Bairns’ title tilt alongside Rangers and Hibs.
A return to Pittodrie would leave Rogers needing to prove himself all over again in competition to the more experienced Brown and McInnes would prefer to have another goalkeeper in place so Rogers can continue to gain experience playing regularly in the Championship.
Bairns manager Houston, however, is not leaving anything to chance. The Falkirk manager has made an offer to former West Ham United goalkeeper Deniz Mehmet after the player impressed on trial.
The 23-year-old, who re-presented Turkey at youth level, was on trial with former Ross County manager Derek Adams’ Plymouth Argyle in the summer.
Houston said: “We’ve made an offer. He’s out of contract and he’s sort of agreed but we need to get clearance. It’s a bit delicate.”