Serge Atakayi made his return for Ibrox side Glasgow Rangers in a reserve game on Monday.
Speaking to the club’s YouTube channel, Graeme Murty has admitted that he annoyed Rangers youngster Serge Atakayi on Monday by not giving him 90 minutes.
Rangers reserves boss Murty brought the 20-year-old into his first XI for yesterday’s 5-2 demolition of Partick Thistle
It was Atakayi’s first game in 16 weeks after suffering an injury in Steven Gerrard’s senior side in November.
The youngster, brought to Ibrox by Mark Warburton in 2016, won a penalty as Rangers went ahead inside four minutes against Thistle, but Murty substituted him on 76 minutes.
And the 44-year-old admits that the player wasn’t happy, but revealed that it’s his duty to ease him back into things after such a long hiatus.
He told Rangers’ YouTube channel: “He’s been really unfortunate. Getting into the first team resulted in him getting a bad injury. It’s good for him getting back on the pitch but he’s frustrated at coming off.
“He wants to play every minute but as members of staff we have to take the higher road and be responsible for his long-term progression. We’ll try get him more minutes but we have to do it safely.”
You can understand Atakayi’s frustration. He was injured on his long-awaited Gers debut in the 7-1 win over Motherwell earlier this season, just as he was making statements to Gerrard.
He will be desperate to make up for lost time in an effort to get further chances in the senior side before the season finishes, but Murty’s approach is smart. Easing him back is the intelligent thing to do after a four-month absence.
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