Rangers FC return to the Scottish Premiership this weekend as they take on Aberdeen at the Pittodrie Stadium on Saturday.
The Gers once again failed to stop Celtic from winning the Premiership crown last season but Gerrard now has no other option other than to stop their arch-rivals from sealing 10 league titles in a row(or possibly lose his job).
Going into this game, the manager has more or less a fully fit squad to choose from but the Gers are still active in the 2019-20 Europa League campaign and will have to play Bayer Leverkusen on Thursday night.
So while Rangers FC will surely not want to drop points vs Aberdeen during the opening matchweek but at the same time, Gerrard might also have one eye on the midweek fixture.
Rangers FC team news vs Aberdeen:
Defender Nikola Katic has undergone surgery on a cruciate ligament injury and he is expected to be on the sidelined until the next year.
This is a huge blow to the manager’s plan and as far as the central defensive pairing is concerned George Edmundson will partner Goldson on Saturday, much like he did during the friendly against Coventry a couple of days ago.
Ryan Jack and Glen Kamara will play in central defence at the Pittodrie Stadium while Joe Aribo is expected to act as the link between the midfield and the front line.
Rangers FC managed to sign Ianis Hagi on a permanent deal this summer and he will be deployed on the right flank while former Liverpool man Ryan Kent will operate on the other side of the pitch.
Jermaine Defoe picked up a hamstring injury in pre-season and will be unavailable for selection this weekend.
This is a bit of an issue for Steven Gerrard since his first-choice striker Alfredo Morelos is being linked with a move out of the club pretty soon and the manager might not want to use him up front during such a time.
Apart from Defoe and Morelos, Rangers FC have 30-year-old centre-forward Greg Stewart at their disposal.
Rangers’s predicted XI vs Aberdeen:
Possible Starting line-up: McGregor; James Tavernier, Edmundson, Goldson, Barisic; Kamara, Jack; Ianis Hagi, Aribo, Ryan Kent; Alfredo Morelos.
