ALFIE COULD MISS CLASH
concerns as he prepares to name his squad for Colombia’s crucial World Cup qualifying doubleheader against Peru on January 28 and Argentina on February 1 – just hours before Gers’ are due to cross Glasgow to face their bitter title rivals.
The news Morelos is in contention for a call-up comes as Hoops legend Chris Sutton called on his former side to postpone next month’s rescheduled crunch if they’re robbed of key stars on World Cup duty.
The Parkhead club could be without Kyogo Furuhashi, Tom Rogic and Cameron Carter-Vickers for the rearranged clash – originally pencilled in for January 2 – against the Light Blues
SPFL rules allow clubs to request a cancellation if they are without three squad members on international duties.
The Gers faithful have so far resisted calls for a postponement but may now change their tune if Morelos is ruled out.
The 25-year-old has been in sensational form since van Bronckhorst’s arrival and was this week named Premiership player of the month for December after blasting four goals in his last five outings.
Morelos has been capped 11 times but was cast into the international wilderness by Rueda, whose faith in the him vanished during last summer’s Copa America.
The Ibrox striker played just nine minutes of Colombia’s seven games during the tournament in Brazil and hasn’t been seen since in the South Americans’ subsequent World Cup qualifiers.
Colombia even picked nine strikers in their squad ahead of him for their November fixtures against Brazil and Paraguay.
But Morelos is back in the running for the clashes with Peru and Lio Messi’s Argentina. They are locked in fourth place with Peru, with Chile and Uruguay a point behind. Only the top four qualify for Qatar 2022.
With Atalanta star and key man Duvan Zapata a major doubt due to a stomach injury expected to keep him out of action for several weeks, a door has now opened for Rangers ace Morelos.
According to reports, Rueda has indicated his decision will come down to a straight fight between Morelos and another Atalanta striker Luis Muriel.
If recalled, Morelos would also be ruled out of Gers’ Ross County trip on January 29 but he could face a derby reprieve if Celtic opt to postpone – a decision backed by Sutton.
The Record Sport columnist said: “Spare me the rubbish about running scared of Rangers if Celtic make an application to have the February 2 derby switched.
“I’d hardly imagine Ally McCoist was running scared of Forfar nine years ago when he was Rangers manager and invoked the rule which says if you have three players away on international duty on the dates of a club game you can request a postponement.
“With four players away, the scheduled League One clash was moved. Ally did what he felt was best for his team and the same would go for Postecoglou.
“It might cause a crammed fixture list down the line but surely it’s better having a glut of games with a full-strength team than spacing games out and playing them without key stars?
“Postecoglou says he doesn’t like to make excuses and prefers to just get on with things. That’s commendable. But if it was me, I’d be doing the same as Ally and trying to get the games off if those three are called for national duty.”