Rangers Sign Daisuke Yokota from Hannover 96

Rangers have turned to Germany for their latest attacking spark, sealing a deal for winger Daisuke Yokota from Hannover 96 as Derek McInnes’ summer rebuild gathers serious pace.

The 26-year-old arrives at Ibrox for an initial £2.75m, with add-ons attached, on a three-year contract that includes an option for a further 12 months. It is a clear investment in a player entering his prime, and one the club expect to influence games quickly rather than quietly bed in.

Yokota hit five goals and four assists in the 2. Bundesliga last season, numbers that only tell part of the story for a wide player known for direct running and a willingness to take risks in the final third. Those are precisely the qualities McInnes has been searching for as he reshapes an attack that must compete domestically and in Europe.

There is no gentle introduction on offer. Yokota could go straight into Rangers’ Europa League squad for Thursday’s third-round qualifier first leg against Jagiellonia Białystok, a tie that already carries weight for the direction of their season. If registered in time, he may find his first minutes in a Rangers shirt arriving under floodlights, with European progress on the line.

“This is a massive club with a fantastic history, passionate supporters and high ambitions,” Yokota said after signing, calling it “a proud moment” in his career. His message was sharp and simple: help the team win now, and build memories with a support that demands nothing less.

From Tokyo to Ibrox

Yokota’s route to Glasgow has been anything but straightforward. He left Tokyo for Germany at just 18, stepping into the academy of FSV Frankfurt before moving on to FC Carl Zeiss Jena. Those early years hardened him in the cut-throat world of European development football, far from home and far from the spotlight.

The real breakthrough came in Latvia. In 2021 he joined Valmiera and became a central figure in a historic 2022 campaign, driving the club to their first-ever league title with eight goals and 10 assists. That season announced him as more than a promising winger; it marked him out as a match-winner.

His journey then took him to Poland with Górnik Zabrze, followed by a switch to Gent in 2024. A loan to Hannover 96 unlocked his best form in Germany, convincing the club to make the move permanent last season. Now Rangers believe they can be the next to benefit from a player who has grown used to adapting quickly and delivering under new demands.

McInnes’ new-look Rangers

Yokota becomes Rangers’ ninth signing of an aggressive summer window. Ivor Pandur, Vanja Dragojevic, Olwethu Makhanya, Ross McCrorie, Dan Neil, Lawrence Shankland, Cammy Devlin and Ben Godfrey have already walked through the door. This is not tinkering. It is a full-scale refit.

“We are really pleased to bring Daisuke to the club,” McInnes said. “He is a player we have been aware of for some time, and he brings qualities that we believe will really strengthen our attacking options.”

The manager’s description is pointed. Quick. Direct. Able to “make things happen in the final third.” Those are the traits that can lift a tight league game or tilt a European tie, and they hint at how McInnes wants his side to evolve: faster transitions, more incision from wide areas, greater unpredictability around the box.

At 26, Yokota arrives with a depth of experience across multiple European leagues but still with room to grow. Rangers are betting that those years of constant movement – Germany, Latvia, Poland, Belgium – have shaped a player ready for the unique pressure of Ibrox, where every miscontrol and every moment of brilliance is amplified.

Yokota spoke of meeting his new teammates and staff “and getting started” as quickly as possible. McInnes, for his part, made it clear the work is ongoing: “We are continuing to strengthen the squad in key areas,” he said, underlining that this is a squad being built to last, not patched together.

The next test will not wait. Jagiellonia Białystok loom on Thursday, and with them the first real glimpse of what this new-look Rangers might become – and how central Daisuke Yokota will be to the story.