Everton close to signing Rangers right-back Nathan Patterson for initial £12m

• Rangers agree club record fee to sell Scotland defender

• He is due to be Everton’s second full-back signing this month

Everton are close to signing the right-back Nathan Patterson from Rangers for £12m plus add-ons. The 20-year-old Scotland international is in line to become the club’s second January purchase after Vitaliy Mykolenko.

Patterson is not a regular starter for Rangers but was identified by Rafael Benítez as a target when the manager took over last summer. Two Everton bids were rejected in that transfer window, with Steven Gerrard, the then Rangers manager, describing the initial £5m offer “a joke”. The fee agreed by Rangers would be the biggest received by the club.

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Patterson’s arrival after that of Mykolenko would meet Benítez’s desire to strengthen in both full-back positions. Mykolenko, a Ukraine left-back, cost an initial £17.9m and the money being spent by Everton is a substantial upgrade on last summer, when the £1.7m Demarai Gray and free transfers were signed.

Patterson has played six times for Scotland and scored on his most recent appearance, the 2-0 win in Moldova that guaranteed a place in March’s World Cup play-offs, in which Steve Clarke’s team face Ukraine in the semi-finals.

Everton’s poor form – one win in 12 games – continued on Sunday with a home defeat by Brighton. There was again no place in the team for the left-back Lucas Digne, who is expected to leave this month after being ostracised by Benítez.