Middlesbrough boss, Tony Pulis is seemingly preparing his summer clear out, with Stewart Downing likely to be one of the names heading for the exit door at the Riverside. 

According to the Daily Record, the experienced winger has been linked with a surprise move to Scottish giants, Rangers, where he would link up with former Liverpool team-mate, Steven Gerrard.

But any deal is reliant on an interesting clause that Downing has in his contact.

If the former England winger is to play one more game for Boro, then he is entitled to be offered a new deal at the end of the season.

Downing has made 31 appearances in total for Tony Pulis' side this season, but has only contributed towards three goals this season for Boro.

Middlesbrough are still in promotion contention though and are currently 5th in the Championship table, despite being on a poor run of form.

It seems unlikely that Boro are going to want to extend Downing's stay at the Riverside and he's likely to be leaving the club at the end of this season.

If you put yourself in Downing's shoes at this moment in time, then you're surely going to have your eye on a move elsewhere, as it seems as though his long-term future isn't with Boro.

If Tony Pulis wanted Downing to stay with the club, then you would have thought that he would have offered him a new deal by now.

So, he evidently isn't part of Boro's long-term future, which is understandable given his age, and Downing should be taking Rangers' interest seriously.

A move to Scotland could be tempting as he could be a real asset to the Rangers team as they look to challenge Celtic for the Scottish title next season.

It would be a no brainer for Downing if Rangers were to come calling, as he simply won't be getting the game time he needs with Boro in next year's league campaign.