Rangers manager Steven Gerrard has heaped praise on Florian Kamberi ahead of this evening’s clash against Braga, lauding him a ‘breath of fresh air’, as quoted by the Glasgow Times.
The 24-year-old joined on loan from Hibernian in January, with his signing prompted by an injury to Jermain Defoe.
The forward is yet to start a game, but came off the bench to great effect against St Johnstone at the weekend, scoring his first Gers goal, registering an assist and earning praise from Bears.
In the absence of the suspended Alfredo Morelos, he’ll be named in the XI in Portugal, and Gerrard was quick to assert that his imminent start was merited by his ability and professionalism.
“We heard a lot of things about Flo before he arrived on the grapevine about the character and the boy and I must say it is completely different to what I have seen and what I have experienced in the couple of weeks he has been in the door,” he said, as quoted by the Glasgow Times. “Ultimate professional, in great shape.”
“He has asked a lot of questions from a tactical point of view so he seems like a student of the game and wants to learn and he is really enjoying being here.
“You can see that in his performances, he is playing with a smile and he has been a real breath of fresh air, so all good.”
(Photo by Ewan Bootman/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Verdict
Kamberi certainly served as a ‘breath of fresh air’ at McDiarmid Park on Sunday, where he was the source of all Rangers’ threat in the second half.
He got a little fortunate with his goal given that he shinned his volley, but they say you make your own luck and his endeavour certainly deserved a reward.
His spin in the build-up to Joe Aribo’s goal was a thing of beauty, too, and he’ll be hoping to take his form into the Braga fixture.
It’s set to be the biggest game of his career to date and as the only available out and out forward, he has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders.
However, should he score and help send the Gers through, he’ll know that early Gers hero status will await him.
