Umar Sadiq hasn’t travelled with Ibrox side Glasgow Rangers to Croatia.
Steven Gerrard has told a Rangers press conference that Umar Sadiq isn’t ready for competitive football as of yet.
The Roma-owned striker was a notable absentee as Rangers were filmed arriving at the airport this afternoon ahead of their trip to Croatia.
It was thought and hoped by fans of the Ibrox club that Sadiq could make his debut in tomorrow’s Europa League qualifier with Osijek after receiving the necessary clearance to play.
However, the game comes too early for the towering Nigerian striker, but Gerrard told a press conference, via The Record, that he could face Wigan in Sunday’s friendly at Ibrox.
He said: “He’s probably a couple of weeks away in terms of being ready for real game time.
“You might see him for part of the Wigan match on Sunday but we felt it better he remain at home to be pushed by our physical trainers.
“It’s important when the supporters see new players they are ready, it would be doing them a disservice to put them in when they are not ready.”
Sadiq’s loss is Morelos’s gain and the Colombian striker has another chance to make an impression on Gerrard tomorrow.
The former HJK Helsinki hitman, a £1 million signing by Rangers last summer, hasn’t looked at his free-scoring best under the 38-year-old as of yet, but the Blues boss will hope he can do the business against the Croats.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
