Ianis Hagi says Rangers transfer business makes 'no difference' to him as playmaker offers relentless pre-season insight

Ianis Hagi spent more than a year on the long, lonely road to recovery from an ACL injury. So it’s little wonder Rangers ’ Romanian international is relishing every minute of what he considers to be the toughest pre-season regime he’s ever experienced.

Ibrox boss Michael Beale has put his players through the mill this summer with double sessions and training on matchdays – as he did on Wednesday before the 3-1 defeat to Olympiakos – in a bid to have his squad super-fit for the season’s opener against Kilmarnock in Ayrshire a week tomorrow. And while Gers looked a little leggy against the slick Greeks, Hagi is convinced the no-pain, no-gain preparation will pay dividends when the ball starts rolling for real.

The attacker, who adopted a slightly deeper role in the build-up, was booked on Wednesday night for retaliating to a poor challenge on him. But he is adamant his reaction was nothing to do with any lingering fears over the condition of the knee that was badly injured in a Scottish Cup tie against Stirling in January 2022.

In fact, he contends, he has never felt fitter and stronger in his life. “It had nothing to do with my injury,” he said. “It was just a poor tackle that was unnecessary and I told the guy it was a friendly game and he didn’t have to do that.

“In terms of injuries, we are in a good place considering other pre-seasons. individually, I have trained in every session, so I couldn’t be happier with myself than I am right now. I’m confident.

“It has been a year and a half – quite a long time – since my injury and I don’t really look back. The most important thing is people came out of this game without injuries and we just build up because the season is just around the corner and we have to be 100