Rangers brought Jason Cummings to Ibrox in January.
Rangers hero Ally McCoist has told The Scottish Sun that he thinks Jason Cummings should watch Celtic’s Leigh Griffiths to learn how to improve as a lone striker.
The Gers were in the market for a new striker in January as they looked for another option to support Alfredo Morelos, and they swooped to bring Cummings back to Scotland.
The former Hibernian striker had only left for England last summer, but a dismal time with Nottingham Forest saw him frozen out and eventually loaned back to Scotland with Rangers in January.
So far, the 22-year-old has been limited to just four starts in all competitions, making an additional seven substitute appearances as his role as a backup striker has been clearly defined to date.
It remains to be seen whether Rangers pursue a permanent deal for Cummings this summer, but most of the discussion surrounding his role with the club revolves around his ability to play as a lone striker.
At 5ft 10in tall, Cummings isn’t the biggest, and he certainly isn’t the fastest, meaning he isn’t exactly suited to playing as a lone striker without bringing clever movement and link-up play to the game, and manager Graeme Murty usually plays with one up front.
Now, pundit and former Rangers hero Ally McCoist has told The Scottish Sun that he thinks Cummings needs to improve as a lone forward, and should watch Celtic’s Leigh Griffiths for pointers on how to play up front on his own.
Griffiths is of a similar stature and struggled himself at playing up front on his own, but has developed under Rodgers, and McCoist believes Cummings would be a much better all-round striker if he studied him and teammate Morelos.
“I can really relate to Cummings and if Rangers get the ball into the box, there’s a good level of goal in him,” said McCoist. “My only concern is that some teams are loath to put balls into the box nowadays and I include Rangers, to a certain degree, in that. He can finish, but I’m not sure he can play up front himself in a three, if that’s how Rangers are going to play. He looks to me as though he might be a better centre-forward in a two-man attack.”
“He had an excellent finish against Falkirk in the Scottish Cup, when he took the pass early and scored. But I’m not sure he’s quick enough or physically strong enough to play up front himself. While I’m saying right now he’s not ready to play in a one, I wouldn’t rule it out in the future, but he’d have to learn and improve. Alfredo Morelos, for all people talk about the chances he misses, does a reasonable job of holding the ball up and playing in that position himself. So Jason should look at that. If he’s looking to learn how to play as a sole frontman, Leigh Griffiths has improved no end on that front.
“It says a lot for him that I think Celtic are a better team when he’s in it rather than even Moussa Dembele or Odsonne Edouard, who are both capable of scoring goals. Domestically, Celtic can get away with playing Griffiths as one up front because they have so much of the ball, though I do get Brendan Rodgers going with Dembele to get them up the park when they’re playing away from home, particularly in Europe. But the improvement in Griffiths over the past couple of seasons has been immense. Cummings should look at the likes of Griffiths and Morelos and see what’s needed to do it. Just making angles, an ability to hold the ball up and bring people in,” he added.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
