Glasgow Rangers bounced back from their disappointing defeat to Lyon in the Europa League with a comfortable win over St Johnstone at Ibrox on Sunday night.
The Light Blues secured all three points thanks to a brace from Wolfsburg loanee Vaclav Cerny, who scored either side of half-time, and head into the international break off the back of a win.
Philippe Clement will surely be pleased with his winger scoring two goals and the side claiming all three points in the Scottish Premiership, but there was an eventful cameo for Ianis Hagi off the bench.
The Romania international had been omitted from the squad over the summer due to a contractual situation that has now been resolved, as confirmed by the manager, and has now returned to the group.
Hagi made his comeback against St Johnstone, with his first appearance under Clement, and started brilliantly with some neat touches and a superb assist for Cerny’s second goal, fizzing a pass into the attacker’s feet in the box.
However, the 25-year-old midfielder was then shown a straight red card for a rash, studs-up, challenge in the middle of the park, with the returning maestro perhaps too eager to make an impression on the Ibrox crowd.
Ianis Hagi's Rangers struggles
Since his impressive 2020/21 campaign in the title-winning year under Steven Gerrard, scoring seven goals and providing 11 assists in the league, Hagi has struggled with form and injuries in Glasgow.
After the unbeaten season, the Romania international only managed two goals and one assist in 15 appearances in the Premiership before suffering a long-term knee injury.
He was out of action from 21st January 2022 to the 27th January 2023 and missed a staggering 69 competitive matches for Rangers before his return to training.
Between the second half of the 2022/23 campaign and the first month of the 2023/24 season, Hagi made 13 appearances in all competitions under Michael Beale and contributed with one goal and zero assists.
The former Light Blues head coach then decided that the midfielder would not be in his plans for the season and sent him out on loan to Spanish side Alaves on loan.
Appearances
22
Starts
8
Goals
0
Big chances created
4
Assists
2
As you can see in the table above, Hagi endured a difficult year in LaLiga in his first full campaign after recovering from his long-term knee injury.
The Rangers whiz failed to score a single goal in 22 league appearances for Alaves but did create four ‘big chances’ in eight starts, which shows that he was still able to offer some creativity in the middle of the park or out wide.
It remains to be seen if Hagi can recapture his form from the 2020/21 campaign and Clement could land an instant upgrade on the attacker by revisiting one of the club’s transfer targets from the recent summer transfer window – Morgan Whittaker.
Rangers' long-term interest in Morgan Whittaker
Back in August, Football Insider reported that the Light Blues wanted to add another top-class forward option to their squad before the end of the window and that Whittaker was one of their targets – alongside Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland.
The report claimed that they faced competition from Premier League sides Brentford and Wolverhampton Wanderers, who were also keen to snap up the English winger.
It added that the Scottish giants had also attempted to sign Whittaker from Plymouth Argyle during the January transfer window at the start of 2024, but they had an offer turned down for the left-footed sensation.
Those were not the first two times that the Light Blues had attempted to sign the winger, however, as they had also been interested in signng him during his days with Swansea.
Fabrizio Romano reported that Rangers had two offers turned down by the Swans during the January transfer window in 2023, before they returned with a third bid of £2m.
Ultimately, they failed to get a deal over the line for Whittaker at the start of 2023 and in both of the transfer windows this year, but Clement could hope that it is fourth time lucky for the Gers at the start of 2025 and sign him as an instant upgrade on Hagi ahead of the second half of the season.
Why Rangers should sign Morgan Whittaker
The 23-year-old star, like Hagi, can play out wide on either flank or through the middle as an attacking midfielder, which means that the Belgian boss could use him in a multitude of roles behind Cyriel Dessers.
Since the start of the 2023/24 campaign, Whittaker has been in sublime form in the Championship and proven himself to be a very capable performer as both a scorer and a creator of goals.
So far this season, the left-footed wizard has created ten chances and scored two goals in nine appearances in the second tier for Wayne Rooney’s side. This means that he has already scored more goals this term than Hagi has managed since returning from his knee injury at the start of last year.
Last term, Whittaker’s form in the league was good enough to earn himself a place in the EFL Team of the Season as part of a front three that included Georgino Rutter and Crysencio Summerville, both of Leeds United at the time.
Appearances
46
xG
10.97
Goals
19
Big chances created
10
Assists
8
As you can see in the table above, the English sensation, who was hailed as “exciting” by his former boss Steven Schumacher, was directly involved in 27 goals in 46 games in the Championship.
He showcased his terrific finishing skills, with 19 goals from just 10.97 xG, and was let down by his teammates at times as they only scored eight times from his ten ‘big chances’ created.
These statistics, and his form this term, suggest that Whittaker would arrive at Ibrox as a huge and instant upgrade on Hagi, whether playing centrally or out wide, as he appears to offer far more quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals from an attacking midfield role.
Bid prepared: Rangers wanted £17m star in the making but got Cantwell
The Light Blues once attempted to snap up the talented forward under Michael Beale.
ByDan EmeryOct 7, 2024
This is why the Gers head coach should attempt to revisit the club’s interest in Whittaker with a January swoop for the Plymouth star, if possible, to improve his team.
