Rangers netted £3 million from the sale of Daniel Cousin to Fulham yesterday and could use the money to finance an ambitious bid for Luke Moore, Aston Villa’s highly rated young forward. Walter Smith, the Rangers manager, has been in talks with Martin O’Neill about Moore and has been quoted a price of £3.5 million for the England Under21 player.

“Rangers haven’t come in for Luke in terms of a bid, but Walter Smith asked me about him and that’s as far as it’s gone,” O’Neill, the Villa manager, said yesterday. “Is there a £3.5 million price tag? Well, yes, obviously because Luke is a Premier League player and that’s what he would cost in this day and age. I spoke to Walter maybe about a week ago and he hasn’t been in touch with me since.”

However, tempting Moore, just 21, to come to Scotland could prove difficult, as Cousin’s departure for the Barclays Premier League illustrates. The Gabon player’s brief association with Ibrox lasted just five months and if his move to Fulham was profitable for both himself and Rangers, it underlined that Cousin used the Glasgow club purely as a stepping stone for a move to England.

He arrived in August from RC Lens of France for a fee of £1.1 million. Rangers could not turn down the chance to make a £1.9 million profit in such a short space of time, even if a percentage of it could go to Willie McKay, Cousin’s agent. It is the second time in three years that McKay has moved a player from France to Scotland and then England in swift succession as he was the agent when Jean-Alain Boumsong joined Rangers in July 2004 from Auxerre as a free agent and then moved to Newcastle United in January 2005 for £8 million.

While Boumsong as a cult hero at Ibrox – but not at Newcastle – the same could not be said for Cousin and many Rangers supporters were unimpressed by the player’s attitude, even if he scored vital goals. Cousin signed a three-year contract when he joined Rangers but had a release clause that was triggered when any bidder offered £3 million, as Roy Hodgson instructed Fulham to do.

Rangers also rejected reports that Tottenham Hotspur have revived their interest in Alan Hutton, who was the subject of an offer of around £8 million from the London club earlier this month. The Scotland right back, 23, turned down the move – even though both clubs had agreed on a fee – and Smith insisted yesterday there have been no fresh developments. “There is nothing on that one,” he said. “Nothing has changed.”

Roy Carroll’s return to England is still in limbo. Derby County were keen to recruit the former Manchester United and West Ham United goalkeeper, while Rangers have most recently been linked with Darren Ward at Sunderland. “It’s fairly straightforward on that one,” Smith said. “Currently, we are attempting to sign another goalkeeper. We can’t really let him go until we do. So far, we haven’t had a great deal of success. If we can do so, Roy has an opportunity to move back to England again which we are happy for him to do.”

Middlesbrough could be planning a move for Brahim Hemdani if they lose George Boateng during the window.