How Alfredo Morelos really annoyed us last night

The biggest frustration last night for Ibrox Noise wasn’t the gifting of two late goals which cost us two points. It wasn’t even the bad game management which led to them both.

No, it was Alfredo Morelos’ performance.

It was fantastic.

The Colombian, so meek this calendar year, once again showed up in European competition like the colossus he is capable of being, following yet another wet display at Killie in which he couldn’t have cared less.

Out there last night in Portugal he was his titanic self – everywhere, harassing, linking, bullying, scoring, supporting. It was the best he’s been in 2020 by a mile, and right back to his late 2019 level.

And yet, come domestic action, Morelos will go back to not caring. Not being at his best.

The way he’s been most of this year, in truth.

The guy just comes alive in the Europa League, as we’ve suggested so many times, where he knows the platform is huge and gives him global exposure. He shows over and over at that level just how good a striker he is, and the Morelos who did his bit in Lisbon is the £120M striker he’d be capable of being if he kept it up domestically.

You may guffaw at the value, but the guy who scored the equaliser, on as a sub, as Ibrox Noise’s Derek pointed out, is only 21 and has been valued by his manager already at the same price. Jorge Jesus said they’d eventually sell this player for more than they sold megastar Joao Felix, and they got around £126M for him.

So let’s face reality – top quality South American players are worth that.

But Morelos only does it in Europe, and that’s excruciating.

If our Alfie could keep that form back up domestically, doing it more weeks than not, then he’s a player we’d chain down if we could.

But he doesn’t, not any more.

Unless, that is, el-bufalo can prove us wrong.

Wouldn’t be the first time!