Gent coach Jess Thorup has hailed the impact of the ‘explosive’ Niklas Dorsch after beating Rangers to the signature of a £3 million midfielder, speaking to Het Laaste Nieuws.
If the former Bayern Munich youngster was hoping to justify a hefty price-tag on his debut for the Jupiler League outfit, it’s fair to say he went about things in the right way on Tuesday.
A Gent side who finished second in the Belgian top-flight last season stepped up their preparations for the 2020/21 campaign with a 3-0 thrashing of Metz.
And Dorsch capped his maiden appearance with a typically tidy assist.
Rangers were interested in bringing the 22-year-old to Ibrox after a fine spell at Heidenheim, according to InFranken in May.
And Thorup is understandably thrilled to have won the race for a ball-playing, midfield maestro who could transform Gent from nearly-men into genuine title challengers.
“I am happy with Dorsch’s debut. You can immediately see that he is a good footballer,” says Thorup, who was forced to leave star striker Jonathan David out of the team as speculation rages around his future.
“(Dorsch) wants the ball, he puts pressure (on the opposition), he is explosive in the first few meters and he immediately gave an assist.
“He has a player we didn’t have before. He gives me more options.”
One man who is not exactly short of ‘options’ in central midfield, however, is Steven Gerrard.
The Rangers coach can choose from Ryan Jack, Glen Kamara, Steven Davis and youngster Jamie Barjonas, while Joe Aribo has looked a man reborn in pre-season with two brilliantly taken goals so far.
In fact, all the praise afforded to Dorsch by Thorup could also be used to describe the former Charlton starlet, who appears to have bulked up and regained his sometimes brittle confidence during a three-month lay-off.
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