Rangers bench for the visit of Hibernian looked as strong as it has for some time with Philippe Clement actually having to leave senior players out too.
Players like Ben Davies and Kieran Dowell were nowhere to be seen and will surely be deemed surplus to requirements when the Gers boss rebuilds his squad again in the summer.
There was another name conspicuously absent at Ibrox though and one that was a surprise given where Rangers are short of numbers and Philippe Clement’s previous comments.
Rangers striker mystery sees Kemar Roofe in Old Firm injury doubt
The training videos released by the media team were back this week and there seemed to be no notable names missing, only RIdvan Yilmaz and long-term injury victims Oscar Cortes and Danilo, with Ryan Jack not yet fully fit either.
Given that Abdallah Sima and Rabbi Matondo aren’t fully up to speed and Fabio Silva’s impact on the left-hand side, it wasn’t a surprise to see the Portugal Under-21 international start on the left with Cyriel Dessers through the middle.
Before the team news was confirmed, there was a genuine question as to whether or not Kemar Roofe would maybe get the nod.
He’s been back training for weeks and has been playing games too, after another two weeks at Auchenhowie, he should have been ready to start against Hibs.
Clement has spoken in the past about looking after Roofe but also claimed that the 31-year old could have a big plart to play in the run-in:
“I want him to be 100 percent fit when he is working with me. Before that, he is working with them. He still can be very important this season. It’s about good communication, what is realistic and not to do stupid things.”
Instead, he was nowhere to be seen with Philippe Clement saying nothing in part of his pre-match press conference.
What does this tell us?
One of two things.
Either Roofe is injured, again or, Clement simply rates Ross McCausland and Matondo as being better options for his forward line with Sima also fit enough for the last 20 minutes.
What this means is that, if SIma comes on, it is likely to be for Dessers with Silva going into the middle in what would be one of our most dynamic forward lines of the season.
Silva has great movement and the space he creates is perfect for Sima to run into.
Either way, what this ultimately proves, is that Kemar Roofe won’t be staying at Rangers beyond the summer.
Philippe Clement wants a younger, more dynamic Rangers squad and Roofe simply doesn’t fit into that.
Historically, Roofe has been Rangers best finisher in recent years so it speaks volumes that Clement has decided that he doesn’t feel he needs him, even on the bench.
Unless, he has a plan to play him in next week’s Old Firm derby.
The gaffer loves to throw a curveball from time to time but surely even that would be one from left field, even for him.
