Rangers may currently sit at the top of the league table but there is no denying that this has been an inconsistent few weeks for Steven Gerrard’s Gers side.
The Glaswegian outfit have only won one of their last three outings and have clearly struggled with Ryan Kent’s absence through injury.
He has been missing since the middle of September and their clash on Thursday evening will still come too soon for the winger.
His extended spell on the sidelines have led to selection dilemmas for Gerrard but he has another big decision to consider in midweek.
On the chalkboard
Rangers face a difficult task this evening as they face Brondby in the Europa League.
The Danish outfit travel to Scotland with the hosts still searching for their first points of the group stage campaign.
They sit at the foot of their group and face an uphill battle in their bid to reach the knock-out stages.
One problem that won’t help is the form of Alfredo Morelos of late. The Colombian has only found the net twice in eight Premiership outings this term and particularly struggled against Hearts last weekend.
Morelos lost possession 17 times and failed to hit the target with any of his seven shots during the encounter. That has taken his tally of attempts at goal to 29 this term with very little reward.
With that in mind, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Gerrard took the decision to axe him from the team.
That’s despite backing the forward in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday. He commented:
“It’s quite obvious he’s not in his best of form but he’s still getting in the right places and his all round game is still okay. It’s only a matter of time before the goals come for Alfredo. He’s sitting on 99 so I’m sure he’ll be desperate to get to 100…”
However, if they really want to give themselves the best opportunity of picking up three points, they must unleash Kemar Roofe.
The striker has found the net on six occasions in 12 outings this term and is the club’s top scorer this term. Consequently, he could strike fear into the eyes of the Brondby defence and terrify their backline.
It’s not just the £26k-per-week earner’s talent in front of goal that stands out, though. His all-round game is eye-catching and his pace could cause the opposition all sorts of problems on Thursday.
Speaking about him last term, Gerrard said: “He’s doesn’t stop, he’s like a Duracell bunny. He’s hitting numbers that you don’t really expect from a forward player.”
Quotes from Eddie Gray back in 2019 also paint a vivid picture of why he needs to replace Morelos this evening. Speaking to LUTV, he remarked: “He’s lead the line well, but he’s got that little bit of pace. It is something we [Leeds] have not got in abundance. Real pace. I’m talking about.”
Roofe has previous in this competition too, scoring a remarkable goal from the halfway line last term. Coincidentally, that was nearly a year ago to the day as he found the net against Standard Liege on 22nd October 2020 with a simply outrageous strike.
Of course, we’re not expecting another miracle like that, but the same sort of potency and desire will be hugely important for his teammates.
AND in other news, Fresh twist emerges on key Rangers figure that’ll leave fans over the moon…
