Oliver Antman Set for Fresh Start at Anderlecht

Oliver Antman is on the brink of a fresh start in Belgium, with RSC Anderlecht set to prise the Finnish winger away from Rangers after a brief and stuttering spell in Glasgow.

Rangers manager Derek McInnes confirmed on Wednesday that the 24-year-old has already travelled to Belgium to put the final touches on the move.

“An agreement has been reached, and Oliver has travelled to finalise everything. I am quite sure that everything will go well for him,” McInnes told the Scottish media, drawing a firm line under a transfer that has moved quickly in recent days.

From Eredivisie sensation to Glasgow struggle

Antman arrived at Ibrox with real momentum behind him. His 2024–25 campaign with Go Ahead Eagles had turned heads across Europe: six league goals, a division-best 16 assists, and four appearances in a KNVB Cup-winning run that transformed the Deventer club’s season and his own reputation.

That form persuaded Rangers to invest £3.5 million, a move framed as smart recruitment and a platform for Antman to elevate his game in a bigger spotlight. The expectation was clear: the inventive wide man who shredded Eredivisie defences would bring the same spark to Scottish football.

It never quite happened.

Antman struggled to fully settle in Glasgow, on and off the pitch. Used across the frontline but never fully nailed to a role, he managed just one goal and five assists in 28 appearances in all competitions. Flashes of his Go Ahead Eagles form surfaced in moments, but not often enough to shift games or silence doubts.

At a club where patience is short and pressure is constant, that inconsistency proved costly.

A reset in Brussels

Now, Anderlecht are stepping in with what looks like a timely rescue act for player and club alike. The Belgian side are reportedly paying just over five million euros for Antman, a fee that gives Rangers a measure of profit while handing Anderlecht a creative talent still entering his prime years.

For Antman, the move offers a different kind of stage. Anderlecht’s tradition of nurturing attacking players, the slightly less suffocating scrutiny compared to Glasgow, and a league that often rewards technical, inventive football all point to a better fit.

Rangers, meanwhile, can present this as a clean break that frees up resources and a squad place for McInnes to reshape his attack more in his own image.

Antman leaves Scotland with numbers that never matched the fanfare of his arrival. Belgium now offers him the chance to look more like the player who lit up Deventer rather than the one who drifted through too many afternoons at Ibrox.