Rangers legend Barry Ferguson is paying tribute to the ‘revelation’ that is Dujon Sterling ahead of Saturday’s Old Firm derby clash with Scottish Premiership champions Celtic at Parkhead.
Now, we knew he was versatile. But we didn’t realise quite how versatile.
Dujon Sterling joined Rangers from Chelsea over the summer as a right-back capable of slotting in at centre-half. At Ibrox, however, Sterling appears to have added another string to his already well-stocked bow, stringing together a steady stream of stand-out performances in the middle of the park.
The 24-year-old was outstanding in an unfamiliar role during that heroic 3-2 win at Real Betis, and was equally effective against Motherwell on Christmas Eve. And, with many of Philippe Clement’s midfield options unavailable for the trip to Celtic, Ferguson has no qualms about Sterling continuing his transformation into a tough-tackling midfield enforcer at the home of the champions.
Dujon Sterling could start for Rangers vs Celtic
“I don’t think anybody in their right mind would have predicted that Rangers would be going into such a crucial spell with Dujon Sterling and Kieren Dowell as the midfield partnership,” Ferguson tells the Daily Record.
“But they were outstanding at the weekend (at Motherwell).
“Sterling has been a revelation in that role. He is like a stallion in the middle of the pitch. Big, strong, mobile and athletic but, more than that, he can see and play a pass.
“With Ryan Jack, Nico Raskin, Jose Cifuentes and then John Lundstram all injured, you are thinking there’s a problem. But I always believe there’s a window of opportunity for somebody to come in and show that they can do a job and operate in different positions.
“The prime example is Dujon Sterling. The big fella will be giving (Clement) a pleasant headache because he has made a really strong argument for staying in the team. He was outstanding in the cup final, and really good in the second half against Real Betis in Seville when he came on at the break.
“So he’s shown he can handle big pressure situations.”
Big test for Philippe Clement’s men
Rangers have not defeated Celtic on their own soil since October 2020, when Connor Goldson scored twice for Steven Gerrard’s side against a Hoops side containing Scott Brown, Vasilis Barkas, Patryk Klimala, Diego Laxalt and Jeremie Frimpong.
Win tomorrow, however, and the Gers will cut the gap at the top to two points, with a game in hand.
