Every time Malik Tillman puts in a strong performance, which is pretty often these days, Rangers manager Michael Beale is forced to once again address the midfielder’s status at the club beyond this season.
And every time, Beale basically says the same thing: Yes he wants to keep Tillman. Yes, he thinks Tillman would like to stay long term. Yes, Rangers are in talks to make it happen. And no, he doesn’t know if it’s actually going to work.
Tillman’s one-year loan from Bayern Munich has a unique structure: Rangers hold a purchase option worth a reported £5 million. That’s looking like an increasingly easy decision for Rangers but there’s a catch: Bayern also reportedly holds a buy-back clause that it could trigger immediately after Rangers use their own purchase option.
It would see Rangers make an instant profit, and instantly lose a player they see as a cornerstone for the future.
Prior to the season, the 20-year-old was virtually unproven in senior club soccer. Now he’s played himself into a weird state of purgatory: maybe too good for the Scottish Premiership but also maybe not ready for the 10-time defending Bundesliga champions.
Tillman’s breakout campaign and his intriguing summer ahead lead this week’s Americans Abroad Five.