Despite picking up a much-needed 4-0 victory in the Europa League against FCSB, it wasn’t all good news for Rangers, who have been dealt a double injury blow ahead of St. Mirren this weekend.
Rangers injury news
It was so very nearly the perfect night at Ibrox, with Rangers sweeping their Romanian opposition aside in impressive fashion. Tom Lawrence opened the scoring with just 10 minutes on the clock, before Vaclav Cerny’s brace either side of the break all but sealed the points and Hamza Igamane turned a comfortable victory into an evening to savour for the Gers with just 20 minutes remaining.
Philippe Clement’s attention must now turn to getting his side back to winning ways in the Scottish Premiership as his side square off against St. Mirren this weekend. The Gers already sit six points adrift of leaders Celtic and second place Aberdeen and cannot afford to drop any more points after losing late on against Kilmarnock last time out.
That said, a double injury blow may well make their task that much more difficult. As confirmed by Clement and relayed by Rangers Review, both Tom Lawrence and Cyriel Dessers are doubts to face St. Mirren after coming off injured against FCSB.
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Clement issued an update on the duo, telling reporters after Dessers suffered an eye injury: “I’m not an eye specialist. I’ve a lot of things to do at this club, but that’s not one of those things. We will see how he is in the next couple of days.”
After what looked like a worse knock for Lawrence, the Rangers boss told reporters: “Tom Lawrence got a bad knock, so we need to see how he is and what we can do with that.”
"Emotional" Dessers must find Rangers form
Amid their inconsistency, Rangers have desperately lacked the talisman that Dessers must become sooner rather than later. The 29-year-old has scored just three goals in eight games so far this season and showcased his frustrations after being forced off through injury against FCSB.
Clement explained the forward’s disappointment following the injury after he walked straight down the tunnel, telling reporters: “He apologised for that. He was so emotional. He was hungry to score, hungry to play good for the team.
“He got a knock on his eye and lost eyesight. He could not see anything any more or not enough to play so he was emotional in that moment because he didn’t want to come off. But he could not play.
“Afterwards he said, ‘Sorry manager I should have stayed longer and sit down and give time for the rest’ but it was an emotional reaction of a player who is very hungry to play.”
It’s the type of luck that Dessers could do without as he looks to make things finally work at Ibrox. Whether he gets the chance to do just that against St. Mirren remains to be seen, however.