Rangers FC are set to take on NK Osijek in Croatia in the second round of the Europa League on Thursday evening. And before the game, manager Steven Gerrard will surely be having some mixed feelings.
The first major setback for the Gers fans was the fact that striker Umar Sadiq did not travel with the squad on Wednesday meaning that the Light Blues will start with Alfredo Morelos on top.
The absence of Sadiq is still not pretty clear but now that the loanee is missing, Steven Gerrard will have only one recognized striker for the away game.
But all is not bad news for the Ibrox outfit as the boss has cleared the air about Ryan Kent’s participation in Croatia.
Kent joined Rangers from Liverpool a couple of days ago and there were serious doubts if the young winger can be registered in time before the Light Blues take on Osijek.
During the pre-match press conference, Steven Gerrard has claimed that Ryan Kent has got the clearance on Wednesday to play against Osijek in the first leg. And the manager has also hinted at the fact that the winger might feature during the game.
Winger Ryan Kent has been given clearance and is eligible to play against NK Osijek on Thursday.[Rangers press con] 🎙️#RangersFC #Gers #RangersFamily #OsijekvsRangers #EuropaLeague #UEL #LFC pic.twitter.com/nj0UWVl34S
— Football Fan Base (@Official_TFFB) July 25, 2018
Gerrard said: “Ryan Kent got clearance about 1 hour 30 minutes ago. He is an attacking player who can play on either side and also at number 10.
“He is an exciting player to watch and we hope he can help us in terms of creativity.
“Ryan is in a good place physically as he has had a few weeks working with Jurgen Klopp, and he is not afraid to push players.”
We expect Rangers to start the game with Jamie Murphy and Candeias on either game and Ryan Kent might be introduced later on in the second half.
Read: Gers fans react to the absence of ‘this’ key player before the Europa League clash.
Read: 4-1-4-1 Rangers’ possible line-up against NK Osijek.
Read: Rangers’ top man confirms that the summer business is far from over at Ibrox.
