Have Rangers found their ‘Dembele’?

Before I continue this piece, I will concede that players can often look much better on paper than they do on the pitch. That a brilliant track record for club A does not prove they will produce similar for club B.

But that said, Rangers really do seem to have struck potential gold with the impressive capture of Colombian U20 international striker Alfredo Morelos. Sure, most of us would not have heard of him before we were linked to him, but equally who knew Daniel Cousin back in the day, or even Michael Mols?

It was only once the name appeared that fans attacked Google (or whatever search engine we used a decade plus ago) to find out what they could about ‘shiny new striker arriving in Govan’.

And what we are finding out about this Colombian goalscorer is our manager Pedro Caixinha is doing a quite astonishing job of finding unknown gems who have a proven track record at a decent level – Fabio Cardoso was another he has plucked from the wilderness but whose career looks more than half decent.

And when we look at Morelos’ career, it is no wonder some Celtic fans actually want the move hijacked – could the HJK man be Rangers’ Moussa Dembele?

Morelos’ stats from the Veikkausliiga make for very impressive viewing – it might not be the highest level in world football but it is barely any inferior to the SPL, and a roughly 30 in 45 rate really is a distinctly useful number.

Someone who can score over one in two at a level similar to the SPL is someone worth having, and the potential for this 21-year striker to deliver what his growing reputation suggests he can is there for all to see.

Hence our green and white friends suggested a hijack.

There is no higher praise of a Rangers target than when our SPL rivals try scupper the move – they literally signed Scott Allan for no reason other than to stop us from doing so, and they have history for such conduct.

And it is no wonder they are worried by Morelos. Sure, the lad might not work out, and sure, he might end up an average striker who has already peaked – but if we look at the laws of possibility, then a 21-year striker free-scoring in a reasonable European league is a great coup.

Let us not also forget the pedigree this kid is coming from. Colombia have been a fantastic exporter of forward players for the past 20 years. The Falcaos, the Baccas, the Rodriguezes to name just three of the world class attacking players Colombia have produced in recent times. It is a fine stable, and the national team has been ranked at number one on more than a single occasion during the same period.

If one country reliably develops fine attacking players, it is Colombia. No one is pretending Rangers are signing Radamel Falcao, but who knows what Morelos is capable of producing under the right environment.

One thing is for sure, I am glad to see this kind of player finally arriving at Ibrox after far too long – a pure goal-getter has been missing from Ibrox since Jelavic.