Hit or miss he may be, but the record of Rangers striker Cyriel Dessers’ deserves respect at the very least.
In fewer than 60 appearances for the Glasgow giants, the former Feyenoord man has 25 goals.
Three goals and an assist in just five games this term already. And when Rangers needed a moment of inspiration during Saturday’s tense Scottish League Cup clash with St Johnstone, it was Cyriel Dessers who Philippe Clement turned to.
His faith rewarded when the £4.5 million signing opened the scoring just 15 minutes after rising from the bench.
Whether Dessers can really be relied upon for a team with bonafide title ambitions, however, remains a source or never-ending debate.
Rangers may need a striker to battle Cyriel Dessers
Kris Boyd, the five-time Scottish Premiership Golden Boot winner, probably said it best.
Speaking to the Scottish Sun, Boyd opened up on his admiration about Dessers’ work-rate and his iron-clad mentality, all the while questioning his consistency and ruthlessness.
Rangers have certainly been linked with their fair share of potential competitors for a place Clement’s starting XI. Those Albion Rrahmani rumours have gone cold, however, while both Tommy Conway and Bojan Miovski secured moves to Middlesbrough and Girona last week.
Conway moves to the Riverside for £5 million.
Miovski, meanwhile, finds himself tasked with replacing La Liga’s Golden Boot winner Artem Dovbyk after securing a £6.8 million move to a team offering guaranteed Champions League group-stage football.
For one-time Rangers right-back Alan Hutton, Aberdeen getting nearly £7 million for a player they signed for £500,000 just two years ago is nothing short of ‘amazing’ business.
And he is also left wondering why Rangers did not make a serious effort of their own, especially given that Miovski ticks about every box imaginable from his proven track record in Scottish football to his considerable re-sale potential.
“It’s amazing. It’s amazing money. It’s deserved because he’s turned up week-in, week-out, he’s scored goals, he’s been a handful,” Hutton tells The Scottish Football Social Club podcast.
“I’m really surprised that Rangers and Celtic haven’t looked, even though could they afford that sort of price tag?
“Talking more from Rangers’ point of view.”
Philippe Clement’s side linked with Mahamadou Diarra
Montenegro international Miovski scored 44 goals in 98 Aberdeen appearances, with 26 of those coming last term. His goals-per-game record is actually superior to that of Dessers, despite the fact he represented a Dons side with far less quality and capable of producing far fewer chances.
“He is 25 and has his prime years ahead of him. If he continues to develop like he has at Aberdeen, there’s no reason why he can’t do well over there (in Spain),” former Aberdeen goalkeeper Joe Lewis tells the Daily Record.
“The thing about Bojan is he has a sell-on value. If he does well and scores goals in La Liga the next move could be £25 or £30 million.
“Bojan has had two great seasons at Aberdeen and leaves as a legend. One of Aberdeen’s top players in recent years.
“He was just phenomenal (last season). Every part of his game was right up there in terms of being a top striker; his link-up play, good in the air and his movement was first class.”
Rangers started with Danilo up top against St Johnstone. After so many months on the sidelines, however, the ex-Ajax man understandably looked rusty before his half-time withdrawal.
One name to keep an eye on during the final few days of the window, meanwhile, is that of Mahamadou Diarra. The WGS Tirol striker is reportedly a £1.7 million target.
