The Rangers striker appears to be channelling his aggression positively under Steven Gerrard at Ibrox this season.
The Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos can turn the tables on Celtic in Sunday’s Scottish Cup final, according to two former Old Firm players.
Morelos has more red cards (one) than goals against Celtic, and the Rangers talisman’s aggression has frequently singled him out as a target for opposition players – and managers.
It is a tactic that worked for the Bhoys back in March this year – although the Colombian appears to have cleaned up his act since then, with not a single sending off to his name.
But speaking about the two sides’ Hampden Park encounter on the Open Goal podcast this week, the one-time Celtic winger, Paul Slane, said: “I remember last year before the Old Firm game, the team-talk would have been wind Morelos up. I tell you something now, (the Rangers manager, Steven) Gerrard’s team-talk this will be: Morelos, wind (the Bhoys defender, Christopher) Jullien up. Because I think Morelos could really get in his head.”
And Kevin Kyle, the ex-Rangers striker, agreed, adding: “Jullien for me he needs to really man up. And you see the likes of Morelos, how strong he is, he will just throw big Jullien about. I think he’s weak physically. I think the two of them are rash. I think (the Celtic defender, Kristoffer) Ajer and Jullien are very rash, and brash maybe.
“Where, instead of maybe just sometimes letting the centre-forward have the ball if they’re facing away from the goal – that’s fine, let them lay it off, but they always seem to try and win the ball and give away stupid free-kicks all the time. And I just think they cannot do that.”
But Slane replied: “I’m very confident about those two defensively, it’s mentally with Jullien – his temperament side is the one for me.”
Celtic are reported to have paid Toulouse £7.2 million for Jullien in the summer transfer window and have used him on 24 occasions since then.
But the Frenchman was left out of the Bhoys’ starting eleven against Hamilton on Wednesday – in preparation, perhaps, for Rangers.
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