Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has had a selection headache or two already this season but there’s a £20m-rated dilemma in his mind ahead of Wednesday night’s trip to St. Johnstone.
Ibrox striker Alfredo Morelos is set to return from a two-match suspension, the first of which saw the Gers booted out the Betfred Cup with no talismanic Colombian to call on to save them.
Whilst Rangers should be well enough equipped to pip St. Mirren without Morelos his absence was undoubtedly a blow and therefore an influence on the result in Paisley.
Morelos, 24, was suspended for the first time this season for a stupid lashing out on Dundee United defender Mark Connolly in the recent 2-1 Rangers win at Tannadice.
The striker was retrospectively punished and the Gers duly accepted a two-match ban hoping that not going down the appeal route would free Morelos up for some tough fixtures in December.
There’s an argument here that this could’ve backfired but Morelos should never have put the club in a difficult situation in the first place.
And this is why Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has a headache with the striker come Wednesday.
There’s no doubt Morelos is Rangers’ first-choice striker but many feel the wee man must learn just how selfish and damaging these incidents are to the club.
A spell out of the side combined with in-house punishment is enough for others, Morelos having done his time with the two-match ban which saw him miss St. Mirren and Motherwell.
The two heroes from the weekend – Kemar Roofe and Cedric Itten – are also two striking options chomping at the bit to retain their places in a competitive side.
Cedric Itten, in particular, might’ve toiled in Paisley but he proved against Motherwell just how eager he is to impress in Rangers colours.
Rated at £20m by Rangers in the summer [Daily Record], Morelos has struggled to recapture the sort of form which saw him commanding such a fee prior to interest from Ligue 1 side Lille.
Does Steven Gerrard offer the striker the chance to recapture his form against St. Johnstone or does he teach Morelos a lesson for his latest indiscretion?
Here’s our starting XI for the trip to Perthshire as Rangers look to maintain a 16-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
