Kyle Lafferty and Alfredo Morelos may be teammates, but they’ve been vying for the number one striker’s jersey since the start of the season.
Morelos has been absolutely flying for what feels like weeks now. He’s Rangers top goalscorer this season with 12 goals in 21 appearances and has improved tenfold as an all-round player.
Lafferty, on the other hand, hasn’t done as much. Niggling injuries combined with Morelos’ good form have seriously limited the Northern Ireland star’s game-time this season. His weekend exclusion against Hamilton Accies thanks to the FIFA five-day rule didn’t help.
Whilst the former Hearts forward was watching on from the bench, Morelos was winning the game. Two penalties won and a goal scored summed up a pretty terrific afternoon for the Colombian.
Lafferty remains Rangers’ number two striker as it stands. He’s miles ahead of Umar Sadiq in the pecking order, and won’t ever miss out when Morelos is injured or suspended. But is that the limit of his value to Steven Gerrard at the moment?
A lifeline in two up top?
There will be times when Gerrard thinks of going with two up front once again. The Gers manager has experimented with it on several occasions. Defeats to Celtic and Livingston whilst doing so didn’t help its case, however.
Many were delighted with Lafferty’s arrival in the summer. With Morelos blowing hot and cold, Rangers fans were consistently bemoaning a lack of options outside of the Colombian. Lafferty’s arrival, however, has only pushed Morelos on to new heights.
With the form he’s now in, he won’t be getting dropped for anyone anytime soon. This must, therefore, be a concern to Lafferty, who would’ve been hoping to get regular game-time at Ibrox this season. That he has done, but not always in his favored striking position.
There’s nothing wrong with Gerrard’s decision in this regard, but Lafferty must be concerned. The Northern Irishman showed great commitment to the club in not travelling with his country last week. That, however, may have ironically cost him more than it saved him. Morelos’ performance at the Hope CBD Stadium was impressive, whilst Lafferty would’ve loved a chance to be Rangers’ savior in the same way Morelos was.
Gerrard will no doubt call on the big forward again on numerous occasions this season. But will it ever be anything more than as just a back-up? So far with Morelos’ form, you have to say most certainly not.
