Ferguson may have found his own Lovenkrands in "outstanding" Rangers star
da esoccer bet： Last Wednesday night, the Barry Ferguson-era at Rangers got up and running with a winning start, albeit in tough circumstances, as the Gers fought back from 2-0 down to beat Kilmarnock 4-2 at Rugby Park.
da bwin： However, the feel-good factor surrounding Ibrox did not continue this weekend, losing 2-1 to Motherwell following another mediocre showing, although this time it was not Philippe Clement at the helm.
The Gers, marooned in the second place, now have very little to play for in the Premiership with nine fixtures to go.
However, the Glasgow giants are still involved in the Europa League, preparing to face Fenerbahçe in İstanbul in the first leg of their round of 16 tie next Thursday.
If Ferguson’s side are going to leave Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium victorious, he’ll need one of his current stars, reminiscent of Rangers’ legend of yesteryear, Peter Løvenkrands, to be at his best.
Peter Løvenkrands' Rangers career in numbers
Løvenkrands joined Rangers from Akademisk Boldklub in his native Denmark in the year 2000 for a reported fee of £1.4m, enjoying a very successful six-year spell at Ibrox.
The winger scored 52 goals and provided 23 assists in 173 appearances for the Gers, winning two Premiership titles, two Scottish Cups and three League Cups, most notably heading home a 90th minute winner in the 2002 cup final against Celtic.
He also netted during famous Champions League victories over both Stuttgart and Porto at Ibrox, on target home and away as the Gers were defeated on away goals in the competition’s knockout phase by Villarreal during his final season in Govan.
Nevertheless, that winner against Celtic at Hampden in particular earned him ‘cult-hero’ status for eternity, with Jordan Campbell of the Athletic noting that this moment ‘is ingrained in the memory of every Rangers fan’.
Løvenkrands actually made 104 appearances alongside interim boss Ferguson, so does the new manager have his own modern-day version of the Danish winger?
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Rangers' next Lovenkrands
Speaking on Sky Sports in December, former Rangers striker Kris Boyd praised Václav Černý’s impact, adding “where would Rangers be if it wasn’t for him”?
The Czech international arrived on loan from Wolfsburg in the summer and has been something of a revelation, with his goal at Kilmarnock on Wednesday taking his tally to 15 for the season, on top of seven assists.
So, let’s see how he compares to the Gers’ other forward options.
Rangers’ attackers compared (24/25)
Players
Goals
Assists
G + A
Cyriel Dessers
21
6
26
Václav Černý
15
7
22
Hamza Igamane
13
3
16
Danilo
6
3
9
Mohamed Diomandé
5
6
11
Nedim Bajrami
5
4
9
Tom Lawrence
5
2
7
Ross McCausland
3
1
4
Ianis Hagi
3
7
10
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt
As the table outlines, only top-scorer Cyriel Dessers has accumulated more goal involvement than Černý’s 22, six of which have come in the Europa League, while that duo, as well as Hamza Igamane, are the only forwards to have more than ten.
Described as “outstanding” by coaches in the international setup, the numbers, particularly in the Europa League, back up why.
Černý – Europa League statistics
Statistics
Černý
Europa League rank
Goals
4
=8th
Goal involvements
6
=5th
Goal involvements per 90
0.99
11th
Goals – xG
+1.4
=17th
Shots
26
4th
Shots per 90
4.31
9th
Shot-creating actions
27
37th
Goal-creating actions
4
=25th
Attempted take-ons
23
=49th
Take-on success % (min 20 attempted)
60.9%
5th
Progressive carries
26
=21st
Note: 888 players have featured in this season’s Europa League
All statistics courtesy of FBref.com
As the table underlines, Černý is both a goal threat and a quality dribbler, doing so at a high level in the Europa League, the competition that is Rangers’ sole focus for the remainder of the campaign, making him similar stylistically to Løvenkrands.
Mark Walker of the National reported that Wolfsburg would be willing to sell Černý for as little as £6.75m, following 35,000 job cuts at Volkswagen, and that’s a deal Rangers should absolutely look to complete, irrespective of whom the new manager will be.
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