Rangers could sign "clinical" award winner to upgrade on Dessers
Rangers could sign “clinical” award winner to upgrade on Dessers
Glasgow Rangers head into their Old Firm clash on Saturday knowing that anything but a win is likely to end their hopes of winning the Scottish Premiership title.
A draw or loss to their rivals away from Ibrox would see them need to win their last two league matches whilst needing Celtic to drop points in both of their games.
Philippe Clement has already secured one trophy in charge of the Scottish giants so far – the League Cup – but still has the chance to seal the domestic treble, by beating the Hoops to the top-flight trophy and then coming out on top against them in the SFA Cup final at the end of this month.
This means that there is the possibility of this turning out to be a special season for the Light Blues, if they can enjoy a successful next few weeks on the pitch.
However, irrespective of what happens on the field between now and the end of May, head of recruitment Nils Koppen and his team will be hard at work to identify targets to bolster the playing squad ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.
A striker could be on the agenda for the Belgian chief and he should push ahead with a move for Lawrence Shankland, who is reportedly a player of interest to the club.
Rangers’ interest in Lawrence Shankland
In February, after the close of the January transfer window, Football Insider reported that the Light Blues are plotting a double swoop for loanee Abdallah Sima and the Hearts star this summer.
The outlet stated that their hopes of landing the two forwards would increase significantly if they can qualify for the Champions League, although that will now need to be through the play-off rounds later this year even if they win the title.
It was also revealed that the Jam Tarts have offered him two ‘record-breaking’ deals to extend his contract with the club, but the striker has yet to commit his future to Tynecastle.
In March, former Celtic and Scotland striker Frank McAvennie told Football Insider that his “sources” revealed that Shankland will make the move to Rangers this summer if given the option to.
The retired attacker stated that the Scotland international is a Gers “supporter” and will link up with Clement’s side if the right offer comes in that Hearts decide to accept.
It remains to be seen how much the Premiership side are set to demand for him this summer but they were reportedly looking for a fee within the region of £3m in January.
Koppen must now splash the cash to land Shankland for Clement in the coming months as the fantastic striker would come in as a big upgrade on current Light Blues number nine Cyriel Dessers.
Cyriel Dessers’ mixed success for Rangers
Michael Beale swooped to sign the Nigeria international from Cremonese for a reported fee of £5.4m last summer, after his side were relegated from the Serie A, and the striker has had mixed success at Ibrox this term.
His return of 20 goals and eight assists in 50 games in all competitions so far looks good on paper for the experienced marksman, as does a tally of 14 goals in 24 Scottish Premiership starts.
However, those statistics do not paint the full picture for the 29-year-old forward, as his wastefulness in front of goal has cost him many more goals.
As you can see in the table above, Dessers has spurned a staggering 24 ‘big chances’ in the Premiership, to go along with just 14 goals, in 32 appearances.
No other Rangers player has missed more than nine ‘big chances’ in the division, which illustrates just how wasteful the former Serie A striker has been.
He has underperformed his Expected Goals (xG) tally by 4.7, with 14 goals from 18.75 xG, and none of his teammates have underperformed their expected return by more than 2.81.
These statistics show that the striker, despite hitting 20 goals for the campaign in all competitions, has let the team down at times with his poor finishing, which is why the club should now push to sign Shankland.
Why Lawrence Shankland is a big upgrade on Cyriel Dessers
He was named the Premiership Player of the Year ahead of Rangers’ Jack Butland and James Tavernier on Sunday, which speaks to the quality he has displayed on the pitch this term.
The award-winner has been in sensational form for the Jam Tarts throughout the 2023/24 campaign and could come in as a big upgrade on Dessers, if Koppen and Clement can get a deal over the line for the Scottish marksman in the upcoming summer transfer window.
First of all, Shankland has racked up a staggering 28 goals and eight assists in 44 appearances in all competitions for Hearts, which means that he has eight more direct goal contributions than Dessers in six fewer matches.
This shows that the Scottish gem, who was once hailed as “clinical” by journalist Euan Robertson, has been more productive than the Nigerian lightweight this term.
As you can see in the table above, Shankland has also been significantly more effective in front of goal than the Light Blues dud in the Premiership, with seven more goals and 15 fewer ‘big chances’ missed.
The 28-year-old star has scored 21 league goals from an xG of 16.86 – an overperformance of 4.14 – and this means that he has plundered seven more goals than Dessers despite having less xG created for him.
These statistics show that the Hearts finisher has far more quality in front of goal, as shown by their respective performance against their xG tallies, and that is why Rangers should swoop for him.
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The Light Blues did not hit the mark when they swooped for the English striker.
Shankland could replace Dessers as the first-choice striker for Clement next season and provide a far more reliable and impressive presence in the final third.