Could 30-year old Ukrainian champion replace Morelos?

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Could 30-year old Ukrainian champion replace Morelos?


It is looking very likely now that Rangers might just sell Alfredo Morelos at an impressive base price of £11M plus addons and sell on clause, but immediately the powers-that-be must look to replace him at minimal cost.

Free agents are very handy for such scenarios with us being outside the transfer window, and consequently Rangers should plunder that market ASAP should Morelos indeed move on.

One such recommendation is former Ukrainian international Oleksandr Hladkyy, a 30-year old ex Shakhtar striker with a very decent goal return in such a strong league weighing in at 63 goals in 185 appearances for Donesk, 24 in 89 Lviv, and 13 in 35 at Kharkiv.

With at least two or three years left in him at a decent level, such a player would be a very useful and convenient short term replacement for Morelos, and if he impresses, longer term.

Hladkyy is a two-time Premier League champion at Donesk, and has a UEFA Cup trophy to add to his name too, not to mention being the top scorer in Ukraine in 2007, and just one shy of repeating the honour the following season.

While it is obvious that a 30-year old player will not have quite the same physical potential and ability he did 10 years ago, he can compensate that with the experience and strength he will have instead and he could well be worth a punt as a good foil for Jason Cummings in the event of Morelos’ increasingly-inevitable departure.

As Graeme Murty has confirmed Morelos and Cummings do make similar runs and are similar players, so, in the sale of Morelos, that would be one ‘problem’ a different kind of striker would solve.

As recently as 2015 our Ukrainian friend bagged 11 goals in 19 appearances, with 4 assists, so he clearly still has something in the tank. If Morelos does get sold, Rangers will only have Cummings as a serious striker up front – and they would be wise to fill the void quicker rather than later.

Hladkyy could well be a simple solution.

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15 COMMENTS

  1. i would rather see young hardies loan deal being scrapped and him given a proper chance that hes never really had!

  2. I'd prefer we wait until the summer. If the stories are true about colombians wanting him in the national squad, if he manages it & scores a couple at the WC we could double that

  3. No, would not support the signing of Hladkyy.

    1. His Goal Rate isnt that Good
    (In my opinion)

    2. He's 30! …Morelos is 21!
    Enough Said

    3. If hes so good why hasnt he left eastern europe?

    4. Why not give Hardie a Chance?
    …hes banging them in for Livy! ⚽

    And I absolutely hate myself for saying this as I always say we should look fowards and not towards ex players and also because he left in the 2012 Fiasco

    …but if we are looking to buy a Striker, What about Lafferty?

    He knows the SPL and seems to be sticking them away for Hearts 🤔

    • lafferty was a free agent and we paid 1m for hererra, it would have been lafferty every day of the week, hererra is a donkey

    • Agree with You about Having Laff Before Herrera but Disagree about Herrera being a Donkey.
      (Got soft spot for Herrera&Cardoso)

      But even so, if we were to go for lafferty now, he wouldnt cost us that much but hearts wouldnt sell him to us anyway

  4. If Alfie goes now, we will need a replacement and free agents are all were allowed, I would hope Mark Allen has a list of scouted candidates to choose from, no matter the age as long as theyre good enough. A simple 3-4 month contract “play for a longer contract” deal or take a chance on young hardie. On hardie however surely there’s no one better suited to judge if he is good enough for the spfl and that is Murty he’s been with him in the youth set up. If he doesn’t rate him as he knows him(scoring in the championship is mile away from doing it in the spfl ) then maybe it is more prudent to try a proven professional especially if they have played in a better league and have a decent goal average. Also maybe someone more suited to playing beside Cummings. Like I said I would hope Mark Allen has a list already compiled. Like wrigleys extra “It’s time to shine “. WATP

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