Once a Ger, always a Ger.
Alfredo Morelos was certainly a man who carried that passion and wore his heart on his sleeve when he was a Rangers player.
The Colombian may not have finished in the style he would have liked at Ibrox, and Morelos’ post-Gers career has taken some unexpected turns.
But he still does have the legacy of being the club’s all-time top scorer in Europe and also being part of title number 55.
And he is clearly still a Rangers man at heart.
Morelos’ Celtic vs Rangers referees claim
Morelos is now playing for Atletico Nacional in his homeland of Colombia, on loan from Brazilian outfit Santos.
And his manager there is non other than former Celtic midfielder Efrain Juarez.
The Mexican has revealed the pair have taken the Old Firm rivalry to South America with a bit of back-and-forth banter between them.
And El Bufalo apparently made a claim that referees have played a big part in Celtic’s successes.
Juarez told The Scottish Sun: “We talked before the derby earlier this season.
“I was saying, ‘We’re going to kill you’, and he was saying, ‘No chance, you guys have been lucky’, and how it was because of the referees that Celtic always win.
“I like joking and always push it. I mentioned how we were in the Champions League and they were in the Europa League.
“I told him, ‘Yeah, you always play on Thursday, and we play Tuesdays and Wednesdays because the big clubs play Tuesdays and Wednesdays!’.
“Alfredo got crazy because he has a big part of his heart for Rangers. But in that situation, we talk about how big that game has been.”
Morelos becomes a leader
After months without a club following his Rangers exit, Morelos eventually signed for Santos in Brazil.
Things didn’t exactly go to plan at Santos for the Colombian as they were relegated from the top flight for the first time and their history and he was unable to make an individual impact.
And just under a year after moving to Brazil, Morelos moved on loan to Atletico Nacional.
A month after that, Juarez was appointed their manager as the 28-year-old inadvertently teamed up with an ex Celtic man.
The Mexican is loving Morelos as a player and has revealed he is becoming one of the leaders in his team.
He added: “As soon as I came here, I sat with Alfredo and I could see in his eyes he is a really good person with a good heart.“
Physically, he’s a tough guy. But when you eventually see his smile and he really talks to you, then you see an unbelievable person.
“At the beginning we made a deal. I said he would get everything from me and all I expected in return was everything from him.
“Now he is one of my leaders and we have an unbelievable relationship. On the pitch, he’s the same Alfredo that was in his prime at Rangers.
“He’s pushing himself, pressing high, keeping the ball, scoring goals, fighting for the team. I trust him 100 per cent.”
