Sir Kenny Dalglish: Calvin Bassey moving on will be heartbreaking for Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst

Giovanni van Bronckhorst has been a busy man in the transfer market in the past couple of weeks.

Antonio Colak, Tom Lawrence, Rabbi Matondo and Malik Tillman have all signed for Rangers, with John Souttar already secured from Hearts a few months ago.

They should all add extra quality to the Light Blues’ first-team.

That’s what Giovanni is looking for. But he appears to now be bracing himself for losing Calvin Bassey. Right now, that is a distinct possibility.

Several teams have been linked with the player recently, with Ajax and Brighton just the latest.

According to some reports, the transfer fee could to be in the region of £15-20-million.

It’s not for me to put a price on Bassey. But from what I have seen, there is no doubt he is a huge asset.

The fact Calvin can operate so well in a number of positions makes him even more desirable to other clubs. He can play left-back in a four or part of a back-three.

His physical strength, pace and delivery of a cross ball have very quickly made him pivotal to Giovanni’s plans.

Calvin’s performances in the Europa League last season put him on the radar of other clubs.

Signed for Rangers from Leicester City by Steven Gerrard for a development fee, he showed promise in his early games at Ibrox at that time.

But he has gone on to a new level in the past six months, and Giovanni and his staff must take huge credit for that.

However, with a high level of consistency of performance comes attention.

It will be heartbreaking for Giovanni if Calvin moves on. It would almost be like the Rangers manager is being punished for improving the player!

There is nothing he can do, though, as movement from club to club is part and parcel of football. It’s how Calvin got to Ibrox in the first place.

It’s now down to waiting to see if the initial interest from elsewhere turns into a concrete bid.

The price will need to be significant for Rangers to consider selling.

There is, of course, the feelings of the player to consider, too, and whether he has a desire to go and earn a more lucrative contract elsewhere. Or if he simply wants to test himself in a more competitive league.

Overall, it’s a compliment to all concerned at Rangers when their players are being looked at by other clubs.

But with the Champions League qualifiers on the horizon, Giovanni would prefer not to lose his best players.

There is in excess of £35m up for grabs next month, and Rangers won’t want to miss out for a second season on the trot.

The Champions League is where every top club wants to be, and Rangers will be no different.

It is not easy to come through two qualifiers so early in the season. But the Ibrox club’s performances in Europe last season will give them plenty of confidence.

Beating Borussia Dortmund, Red Star, Braga and RB Leipzig to reach the Europa League Final was massive, and they deserved that success, even though it ended in disappointment against Eintracht Frankfurt.

In the wake of Seville, there was much talk over Connor Goldson’s future. So securing him on a new deal was also a great piece of business.

He has been rock-solid for two or three years, and Giovanni did not want to lose him.

Part of the reason Connor would have stayed was to get another crack at the Champions League. It eluded him last summer, and there will be a real desire and determination not to taste that bitter disappointment again.

With Celtic already guaranteed to be there, Rangers will not want to lose pace with their great rivals, on or off the park.

The start of the Premiership season is less than two weeks away, and all managers won’t want to be experimenting much more.

They will want to have a settled side, who know the system and patterns the manager wants.

Rangers have a really demanding schedule, and Giovanni will need all his players fit and available.

He will not want to go into these games without Calvin Bassey or, indeed, Ryan Kent, who is also being linked with a move away.

But as a manager during the transfer window, you have to expect the unexpected and be prepared for all eventualities.

You can never take anything for granted. It can all change so quickly.