Danny Mills has slammed Glasgow Rangers' lack of due diligence after they appeared to block Ianis Hagi from competing at the Olympics for Romania.

The Lowdown: Hagi will not play in Tokyo

It appeared Hagi would be selected to appear for his country in the football tournament at the Olympics in Tokyo this summer, but the Gers have refused to let him go (The Scottish Sun).

Romanian football legend Mircea Lucescu was livid at Rangers' decision not to release him for the competition.

The Latest: Mills slams Gers lack of due diligence

Speaking to Football Insider, Mills does not appear to agree with the club's decision. He said:

"[Lionel] Messi played in it, [Sergio] Aguero played in it.

"If you sign a talented under-23 player who’s possibly going to be in the Olympics, if the Olympics goes ahead, then you’ve got to be prepared for that.

"You can’t sign a player that plays for one of the African Cup of Nations teams and then go ‘I don’t want him to be away in January.’

"You can’t sign Son Heung-min who plays for South Korea in the Asia Cups and the military service and all the rest of it…

"Surely you have to do your due diligence and know that’s going to be a possibility. If you’re player’s good, he’s going to get called up.

"I get that they’re trying to persuade their players and say ‘Do you really need to go?’

"But it’s the opportunity to play in an Olympics. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity. Why would you not want to go and represent your country?"

The Verdict: Difficult decision

You can understand both sides of the argument here. From Hagi's perspective, it is not hard to understand why he would want to travel to Japan. Representing your country at the Olympics is a huge opportunity, and it would be a hard one to pass up.

However, the tournament will coincide with Rangers' Champions League third qualifying round. The Ibrox outfit will be desperate to make it to the group stages, and they clearly believe £5.4m-valued Hagi (Transfermarkt) has a role to play in that quest, and a FIFA directive means they have more authority to block players from taking part in Tokyo. Hagi will be hoping he is at least heavily involved at the start of next term for his club.

In other news, Rangers are planning a bid for this 21-year-old.