Rangers forward Kyle Lafferty was back in the starting XI this weekend.
Glasgow Rangers striker Kyle Lafferty has had a difficult last couple of months since making his return to the club in August.
He was back in Steven Gerrard’s starting XI at the weekend as Rangers beat Livingston at Ibrox.
Lafferty’s performance was underwhelming, and showed he has a lot of work to do to get back to his best.
Even so, the Rangers star played an important role simply by being out there.
The Morelos factor
Rangers have a huge game on Thursday at home to Villarreal in the Europa League. It is a must win game for the Gers.
Alfredo Morelos is Rangers’ star striker and the club are right to protect him ahead of the game with the La Liga side.
It turned out perfectly, with Morelos coming off the bench to score late in Rangers’ 3-0 win.
If Lafferty was unfit, or regarded in a similar way to Rangers flop Umar Sadiq, then Morelos would be having to carry the burden and start twice a week.
Instead Steven Gerrard is able to manage his squad sensibly and ensure Morelos is not over exerted by time the Villarreal clash comes around.
Lafferty’s performance was disappointing, but he did help soften the Livingston defence up, before the more energetic Morelos came on.
This could turn out to be a useful tactic over the course of the season and Lafferty will improve.
If at the moment he is limited to just playing ‘spoiler’ to enhance Morelos, then it is still a valuable role.
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