BOLOGNA’S FAILED BID FOR RAMSAY

ABERDEEN have kicked out a bizarre bid by Serie A side Bologna to sign full-back Calvin Ramsay on loan until the end of the season.

With the transfer window entering its final days, however, the Dons are bracing themselves for a £5million offer from Leeds United for the coveted 18-year-old — with Manchester United and Leicester City also in the hunt for his services.

Bologna proposed to take Ramsay on loan until the end of the season, with an option to make the deal permanent this summer for £4.5m. Aware that the Italians raked in £6m from Club Brugge for Danish winger Andreas Skov Olsen this week, Aberdeen insist the loan offer is unacceptable.

Facing the prospect of losing winger Ryan Hedges for nothing in the summer, the Pittodrie club have accepted a £200,000 bid from Blackburn Rovers for the 26-yearold Wales international.

And Dons chiefs are now anticipating more realistic offers for Ramsay over the weekend.

Leeds are expected to firm up talks with an offer close to £5m, while Manchester United and Leicester are giving serious consideration to late bids.

Key to any deal in the current window is a buying club agreeing to send the youngster back to Aberdeen on loan for the rest of this season.

Manager Stephen Glass hopes today’s Premiership visit of St Johnstone is not Ramsay’s final appearance for the club, but accepts events are out of his hands. He also admitted the speculation over the young fullback’s future has clearly affected his performances of late.

‘I’m involved in discussions,’ said Glass. ‘But when it gets down to the nitty gritty of numbers, other people decide that.

‘I have spoken to Calvin, but more on (his) performance level than the situation. I spoke to him at training today, just dripping bits in here and there to shut all the s*** out for 90 minutes and just go and play.

‘(Telling him to) do what you were doing in August before people were talking about you all the time. That’s all you can do and that’s all he should be focusing on anyway, but a little reminder here and there helps young players.

‘Plus showing him a lot of the video stuff we do of his performance level, not just saying “get your mind off it”, but showing him where he could and should have done better. He has done well, but (we’ve been) showing him bits recently where he’s not been doing what he was doing earlier in the season.’

Despite offering no encouragement to Bologna over Ramsay, Aberdeen could still receive another loanto-purchase proposal from Italy for midfielder Lewis Ferguson before the end of the window.

Cagliari’s Uruguayan midfielder Nahitan Nandez is expected to move to Juventus, Inter Milan or Torino before Monday’s deadline.

And that is likely to trigger a written approach to Aberdeen from the Serie A strugglers, albeit it is destined to meet with the same response as the Bologna offer.

Glass still hopes to add to his squad before Monday after losing injured striker Marley Watkins until March. Dutch winger Vicente Besuijen, 20, has been cleared to play against bottom club St Johnstone today after joining from Den Haag.

Desperate to bounce back from a poor defeat at St Mirren this week, Glass said: ‘His (Besuijen’s) visa came through, so he’s good to go. He’ll be in the squad and we’re looking forward to adding him.

‘It’s especially good to have him available when you come off a game like we did the other night, where I think we accept it was probably the worst performance we’ve given.

‘Too many players didn’t produce on the night, the team as a unit didn’t produce. We need a spark and we’re hopeful he can provide it.’

Today’s opponents St Johnstone, meanwhile, have added midfielder Melker Hallberg to their squad after the Swede was released by Hibernian.