WATCH HIM SOAR
Morelos will be worth so much more than our £1m outlay when time comes to move on, claims Pedro FLAT OUT:
PEDRO CAIXINHA has predicted a handsome profit will be pocketed by Rangers in years to come when the club opts to cash Morelos.in on scoring star Alfredo The Ibrox manager expects Morelos to be worth considerably more than the £1million paid two months ago to HJK Helsinki to land the 21-year-old Colombian.
That chimes with the vision of director of football Mark Allen, who stated he wants to turn Rangers into a club famed for sourcing players of great potential then making millions on their sale.
Morelos, scorer of 46 goals in 62 appearances in Finnish football, was scouted by Rangers following a tip-off from Caixinha’s No 3 Jonatan Johansson.
Caixinha forecasts a prolific career in Glasgow for the South American, whose attitude as well as accuracy in front of goal will turn him into a major transfer target outside of Scotland.
‘He’s a boy for the future, so will definitely be worth a lot more money in a few years than we paid for him,’ said Caixinha. ‘With his age, what he does with his passion and desire, definitely.
‘When he first came here I had a one-on-one interview with him. He told me he wants more and he’s willing to fight for more. That’s very good to have that ambition.
‘It says a lot about his character he moved young from Colombia to Finland — a big change. Scottish football is different to Finland.
‘He came to Europe to adapt but the weather up there is even more aggressive than here. He’s not the type of guy to take a kick and immediately the defender knows he has him in his pocket.
‘Alfredo will keep fighting. That’s important in Scottish football. Here, if a winger or striker doesn’t have that character, everyone knows if you kick them once they’ll be out of the game.
‘But that’s not Alfredo. He’s at a different stage in his career now. He knows you need not just quality but to be a special type of character to perform at Ibrox. He’s showing that already.’
Fit from a summer season in Helsinki, Morelos netted in his first two domestic starts for Rangers — a double against Dunfermline in the Betfred Cup then last week’s opener against Hibs.
His style triggered a memory in Caixinha of the ravenous appetite possessed by Newcastle’s Mirandinha — the first Brazilian to play in England 30 years ago.
‘In Portugal we used to talk about Mirandinha,’ said Caixinha. ‘This guy would shoot on goal from wherever he was. Every time he received the ball, he’d have a shot.
‘So we call Alfredo the name Mirandinha. The other one is Shooter because he’s always shooting on goal. He likes to be in contact with the ball and be on the end of scoring chances.
‘Already his goal ratio is good with us. He’s a boy who has anger, desire and passion. He plays for the team and he’s a winner. So he has an important role even when we don’t have the ball.
‘He’s the first to put pressure on the opponent and make it hard work for centre-backs. He runs the whole defensive line. But we need to give him time because he’s only young.’
Caixinha’s trust in Morelos, plus the capture of Mexican striker Eduardo Herrera, prompted him to sanction the sales of Joe Garner and Martyn Waghorn to Ipswich.
Now he hints that another Mark Warburton striker, Joe Dodoo, could be surplus to requirements due to his provision of attacking talent.
An early-season injury prevented 22-year-old Dodoo, signed from Leicester City, from gathering any momentum last season. He scored only three league goals in substitute appearances.
And fitness issues have once again conspired to prevent him from making an impact in preseason as he was unavailable while Caixinha primed his squad through a July friendly campaign.
‘Joe couldn’t travel with us and was a long time out,’ explained Caixinha. ‘But he’s back now and he’s getting his levels. We’ll see where the market leads us. I don’t want to be overloaded with players who might not be an option for us.’