Ianis Hagi’s lack of game time at La Liga outfit Deportivo Alaves is a cause for concern back home in Romania with the Rangers loanee yet to start a single game in 2024.
If the £3 million man had hoped to catch the eye of Philippe Clement over in Spain before kick-starting his Ibrox career next term, then things are not exactly going to plan.
Ianis Hagi played only four minutes off the bench in Alaves’ 1-1 draw with Villarreal this weekend. And that has been the story of his time in La Liga, the Romania international starting only six games and none in the last two months.
Rangers’ Ianis Hagi struggling in La Liga
“I’m a little worried here,” Mihai Stoichita, the technical director of the Romanian national team, tells Orange Sport.
“I want Ianis to play there because (he) is full of talent, I know he doesn’t (hold back in) training. He’s a player who want and loves to play football, and does everything for this.
“You can’t ignore him like that forever. I also watch Alaves’ matches and it seems to me that it’s unfair that he doesn’t play.”
Hagi’s lack of regular action is not only bad news for the player himself, but also far from ideal as far as Romania are concerned. The former Genk playmaker is a huge reason why the Tricolorii have the European Championships to look forward to in the summer – scoring the decisive goal in the 2-1 qualification victory over Israel in November – but is now facing up to the very real possibility of arriving in Germany undercooked and underprepared.
That’s assuming he’s included in the squad, of course.
The Euros is looming
“The player must prove his worth. He has to prove that he deserves to be in the national team,” Anghel Iordanescu, a former Romania head coach, tells Fanatik
“If you don’t play for your club, stay at home! How can you face a European Championship if you are not in rhythm, prepared, and you don’t have games in your legs?
“Oh, you can play a match. You play by talent, desire. But playing three games at that level means you’re basically dragging your team down.”
Hagi, as things stand, will return to Rangers in the summer when his loan spell ends.
