Joe Rothwell excited to team up with Russell Martin again

Joe Rothwell is relishing the chance to work under Rangers boss Russell Martin again after the midfielder sealed a permanent transfer from Bournemouth.

The 30-year-old, who still had a year to run on his Cherries deal, has moved to Ibrox for an undisclosed fee and signed a three-year contract.

Rothwell spent six months on loan under recently-appointed Gers manager Martin at Southampton in the 2023-24 campaign as they won promotion from the Championship via the play-offs.

“I am delighted to have the deal done and be here,” Rothwell told Gers’ website. “It is brilliant. The size of the club speaks for itself and as soon as the interest was there it was an immediate ‘yes’ from me.

“With Russell coming in too it made that decision a little bit easier because working with him in the past and I know what type of guy he is and how he wants to do things. That was an even bigger pull for me, but the club speaks for itself.”

Rothwell did not get the chance to play in the Premier League under Martin as he instead joined Leeds on loan from Bournemouth last season, but he enjoyed more glory at the Elland Road club – whose chairman Paraag Marathe is also now Rangers’ vice-chairman – by playing 39 matches in the Whites’ surge to the Championship title.

Martin believes the fact his latest signing arrives at Ibrox on the back of fruitful loan stints bodes well for his time in Scotland.

“He is a player who we thoroughly enjoyed working with during my time at Southampton,” said the manager.

“His leadership, professionalism and quality were a huge asset. He is joining on the back of two promotions so helps bring a real winning mentality to the group. We are excited for Joe to join up the squad, get to know his teammates, and help make the group stronger.”

Rothwell, who played up to Under-20 level with England, came through the ranks at Manchester United before moving to Oxford in 2016.

He then spent four years with Blackburn from 2018 to 2022 before signing for Bournemouth, which preceded his back-to-back promotion-winning stints at Southampton and Leeds.

Gers sporting director Kevin Thelwell added: “We are thrilled to secure Joe’s services as we continue to strengthen the squad this summer.

“He has a wealth of experience in the game having performed strongly over a number of years at various levels in England.

“We believe he has the right temperament and quality as a player to be a strong addition to the squad and look forward to seeing his impact.”

Rothwell became Rangers’ third new addition this summer following the arrival of midfielder Lyall Cameron from Dundee and right-back Max Aarons on loan from Bournemouth.

The trio were later joined by Peterborough defender Emmanuel Fernandez.

The 23-year-old, who was a regular for the Posh in League One last term, agreed a four-year deal at Ibrox.

He said on the club’s website: “I am honoured, it is a huge club with a great fanbase and I think I can kickstart my career and have a good journey here.

“I was shocked when I heard about Rangers because it is such a big club but it was the place I wanted to be.

“I haven’t played at this level, there will be a lot of life changes for me, but it is something I want to be part of and I can’t wait to get started.”