GO FAL OUT

Gerrard urges Morelos to upstage hero

STEVEN Gerrard has urged Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos to upstage Galatasaray great Radamel Falcao and impress watching Colombia manager Carlos Queiroz tonight – by firing Rangers into the Europa League group stage.

Morelos is set to take to the same field as his boyhood idol Falcao, the former Porto, Atletico Madrid, Manchester United and Chelsea forward, in the one- off play- off match against the Turkish giants at Ibrox.

Gerrard revealed that ex- United assistant Queiroz has been in touch with him this week and will be taking a close interest in how both of his players perform in Govan tonight. He believes his mercurial front man has the potential to scale the same heights as his country’s all- time leading goalscorer in future if he displays the same level of dedication and professionalism.

However, he stressed that Morelos’s immediate priority must be on netting against Fatih Terim’s men this evening and ensuring Rangers qualify for the third year running. Gerrard said: “I’ve had a conversation

with the Colombia national coach, Carlos Queiroz ( inset), who tells me he will be watching both players on Thursday night,” he said. “But I think the only incentive for Alfredo is to impress the Rangers fans and to impress me, the coaching staff and his team- mates with another fantastic performance at this level. Because we know when he’s at his best how important he can be for the team. That should be his only focus.

“The biggest and most obvious thing I’ve noticed is that he looks happy. He’s smiling, he’s better around the place, he looks focused. His professional attitude has been spot- on.

“Normally, when you have that approach, good performances come out on the pitch and that’s certainly what we are seeing of late.”

Gerrard added: “I’ve read before today that Alfredo has an incredible amount of respect for Falcao, which is great. He should use Falcao as a role model for the level he is striving for.”