Rangers have been hit by calamity pre-Malmo after it was confirmed that once again the entire left flank of the team is unavailable for selection.
With left backs Jefte and Ridvan missing, left winger Oscar Cortes has also been confirmed out for a month or more, meaning that aside the deputising by Nedim Bajrami on the left wing, Rangers don’t have a single option properly outfitted for that area of the pitch.
It appears Dujon Sterling will have to deputise at left back, while Bajrami, naturally a 10, will start on the left, albeit that’s the only position manager Philippe Clement has been deploying him in since signing him from Sassuolo.
It’s not ideal – despite Ibrox Noise’s Derek’s constructive and potentially positive appraisal of Rangers’ prospects in Sweden tonight, Clement is hamstrung by yet more injuries, and in Jefte’s case, suspension, robbing him of an entire side of his team and causing Rangers’ boss to have to improvise a bit.
There is no denying Malmo are in red-hot form, and will be one of the dark horses to qualify from the Europa League League stage – Rangers in truth aren’t, and it’s not helped by lacking a handful of very important players whose absences must be mitigated for.
Clement has not had his troubles to seek already this season, and a patchwork Rangers going to on-form Malmo only makes his job harder.