Lassana Coulibaly’s form has been up for much debate in recent weeks. Is he really off-form or is it mostly in our heads?
At first glance, there’s definitely something not up to par with the Malian midfielder. Granted, he won the ball well on Sunday before sliding in Ryan Kent to open the scoring. It was a beautiful piece of play, and it got Rangers up and running.
Yet, even at the Hope CBD Stadium at the weekend, Coulibaly struggled to get Rangers on top. He was still working tirelessly to win every ball for Rangers, but he doesn’t carry that same presence or menace.
Coulibaly started life at Ibrox in as good a fashion as could possibly have been hoped. A storming start to his Gers career had him nailed in as one of the first names on the team-sheet. He as full of drive, energy, and put some fear into opposition midfielders.
Rangers haven’t been controlling games as well, however, since his injury that he picked up in mid-August. Coulibaly was out of action for over a month, before returning to action with a goal against Dundee.
Since then he’s made a further six appearances in the first-team, but he’s still lacking that punch he had at the start. His passing looks a bit more erratic, and his touches on the ball seem clumsier.
A ball-winner
Primarily, he’s a ball-winner. If we’re all being honest, however, even that trait has gone down a couple of notches in quality also.
It’s worth remembering, of course, that Coulibaly suffered a nasty thigh injury. It’s a part of your body that you have to be careful with, and he’ll be wary of doing more damage to it at the moment.
A fit and on-song Coulibaly remains the kind of player Rangers should want to build their side around. At the moment, however, he’s far too clumsy in the midfield when on the ball, and doesn’t seem to have the same quality off it either.
It could be down to the fact that the midfielder is still recovering from his thigh knock. But the honest truth is that he’s played plenty of games since then.
As for now, it will remain a mystery as to why the Malian is playing with a fraction of the quality he showed earlier this season.
