Rangers bound midfielder Nnamdi Ofoborh missed out on Wycombe Wanderers’ squad for an EFL Championship fixture against Barnsley on Wednesday night as his struggles continue.
The 21-year-old Bournemouth player signed a pre-contract agreement with the Gers during the winter transfer window before joining Wycombe on loan until the end of the season.
It’s a second stint with the Chairboys for Ofoborh, who played a key role in their successful League One promotion push last season.
However, the Nigeria youth international has struggled to re-establish himself at Adams Park.
He started his first three matches following the transfer, but was an unused substitute for the following four and then made brief substitute appearances in the next five matches.
The most recent of those outings came on Saturday afternoon, as the Ibrox-bound prospect played the final 12 minutes of a 1-0 home win over Preston.
Yet, just a few days later, he missed out on the matchday squad for the first time against Barnsley.
There’s an element of mystery surrounding his omission, given that Wycombe reported no fresh injury concerns in their Big Match Preview and no news regarding Ofoborh came out of the club after the game.
It’s possible that he picked up a late knock that ruled him out of contention but it looks like he may simply have been dropped.
Some clarity may be provided ahead of Wycombe’s trip to Coventry City on Saturday afternoon, but either way, it’s concerning that Oforborh hasn’t yet managed to make an impact at his loan club.
Steven Gerrard would likely have been hoping that the raw and powerful youngster would get regular playing time over the second half of the season so that he would be well prepared ahead of his summer move to Ibrox.
There’s still time left to turn things around, but if he can’t get into a team rooted to the bottom of the English second tier, it seems unlikely that he’ll be able to genuinely compete for a spot in the Rangers XI next season.
After a rare weekend off, the Gers are back in action against Slavia Prague in the Europa League on Thursday night and the pre-match press conference appeared to drop a big selection hint.
