Sometimes, you just know a player is Rangers standard very quickly into their Ibrox career, and that is very much the case with Connor Barron and Václav Černý, who have both lit the place up already barely two minutes into the season.
Later we’ll focus on our new midfield dynamo Barron later, but for now it’s our on-loan wing wizard who was a clear winner the second we saw his CV. We did have one note of caution, but it was just that, a caution – everything about the Czech international’s CV was quality, and the kind of player Rangers desperately needed.
And in two appearances the former Twente star (what is it with Rangers and FC Twente at the moment!) has already shown he’s marquee quality worth every inch the circa £10M he’s valued at.
It’s clear to see why he has 17 international caps, with 8 goals and assists in there too – and it’s extremely shrewd scouting to find this guy who hadn’t really got going in Germany at all with parent club Wolfburg and suss out that he had so much more in his locker.
Already he’s assisted in the Champions League, the massive equalising assist for Cyriel Dessers in Poland, and then followed it up with a ridiculous worldie v Motherwell.
He also had some wonderful touches, movement, and set up a wonderful through ball or two as well. It’s evident Cerny is a player, a top player, and far more like the kind of level and quality Rangers are supposed to have.
Look at his instant impact in proper serious competitive football compared with the ‘give him a chance ffs’ nonsense fans try to justify other players with. Quality is quality, and very, very rarely needs months and months to show it.
There are some fans this morning defending Rabbi Matondo, bigging him up – two years he’s nowhere near impressed like Cerny already has. The goal v Celtic was stunning, but it’s the only moment he’s had in 25 months. He’s just not done enough.
We do like Matondo, but that’s the difference. Cerny has made a colossal impact inside barely one full 90 minutes, Matondo still divides fans over two years later.
No, Cerny is one we really want to aspire to securing permanently – but clearly he won’t be cheap. If he keeps up this scintillating start, his price might even rise.
Time will tell if this is one we will want to make permanent, and if we can make permanent.