Serie A hitman Cyriel Dessers could be a big hit at Rangers if he moves to Ibrox in a potential £7 million deal from Cremonese.
That is according to Thomas Buffel; the one-time Ibrox midfielder who watched Dessers closely during his spells in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Rangers are prioritising a new centre-forward following the departure of the long-serving Alfredo Morelos. Cyriel Dessers, then, would certainly have big shoes to fill in Glasgow. Morelos, after all, is not only Rangers’ all-time top European goalscorer, but a man who proved himself capable of stepping up to the plate in the most high-pressure of scenarios.
But, if you are to base Rangers’ interest on Dessers’ outstanding 2020/21 season at Feyenoord, you can see why the Belgium-born Nigeria international has emerged as one of Beale’s top targets. Not only did the instinctive Dessers score 10 goals in 13 games as Arne Slot’s side reached the UEFA Conference League final, he also made a habit of popping up in the right place at the right time, just when Feyenoord needed him the most.
Of the 20 goals Dessers scored that term at De Kuip, many were late winners or last-gasp equalisers from a striker who could fill a scrapbook with his collection of ‘clutch’ moments.
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“My advice to Cyriel is to play his own game. Don’t worry about becoming the ‘new Morelos’,” Buffel tells the Daily Record.
“I think he’s a player who has different qualities as a striker. Sometimes you have small fast strikers. Other times you have tall target strikers. But he’s kind of both.
“He has his size, which is an advantage so he can hold off defenders. But he also has good technique as well to make a dribbles. He’s not the fastest but he can run away from defenders.”
Eredivisie Golden Boot winner with Heracles back in 2020; Dessers will cost Rangers around £7 million. A now-relegated Cremonese are determined to make a profit on a player they snapped up less than 12 months ago (Daily Mail).
Buffel, meanwhile, believes that Dessers will have few problems handling the glare of the Glasgow goldfish bowl.
“He’s played every week at Feyenoord in front of 40,000 people, so he knows what pressure feels like. Sometimes at Rangers, players have difficulty adapting to that,” Buffel adds.
“Cyriel has shown he can cope with that change. He’s not a young player anymore either. At 28, that’s a fantastic age. You’re at the best of your level, and you have a lot of experience under your belt, I think it would be an asset for any club to have a player like him in their team.
“For me, he’s a player who can be very productive in Glasgow. That’s the first thing you look at when you search for a Rangers striker because you have to score goals at that club. At tIe end of the day, Rangers strikers have to score.
“But Cyriel is a goalscorer. And, if he has good players around him who deliver the ball to the right spot, he will make the runs that allow him to hit the net.”