KENT ANSWERS TRANSFER TALK WITH A SPARKLING DISPLAY
Kent answers transfer talk with sparkling display as Leeds prepare to raise stakes No regrets from Gerrard over ‘easy’ decision to jettison unsettled Morelos after Lille ‘pause’ bid
TWO Rangers players. Two bids rejected. Two very different human reactions. Alfredo Morelos downed tools. Ryan Kent used them to drill a hole in Kilmarnock’s defensive wall.
Morelos gave Steven Gerrard an ‘easy decision’ to leave him out of Saturday’s win over the Rugby Park club by displaying a lack of commitment in training.
The Colombian is unsettled following the rejection of a £16million offer from French club Lille and wants to leave.
Whether the Ligue One side still want to buy him is the question. President Gerard Lopez says they’ve ‘pressed the pause button’ on the striker after landing top target Jonathan David.
Despite a range of attacking options, however, Lille suffered frustration in a 1-1 home draw with Rennes on the opening day of the French season. With defender Gabriel Magalhaes edging close to a £30m move to Arsenal, the money is there to bring the Morelos saga to an end should they feel the need.
If they don’t, the decision of the Rangers board to turn the money down in the first place begins to look rash.
The Kent scenario is a little more nuanced. A target for newly-promoted English Premier League side Leeds United, Rangers have turned down an opening offer believed to be in the region of £8.5m with add-ons taking the fee up to £10m.
Gerrard doesn’t want to sell and there is no evidence that Kent wants to leave.
The former Liverpool wide man was the best player against Kilmarnock, sealing the points with the second goal and doggedly chipping away incessantly at the resistance of the visitors.
Rejected bids affect players in different ways. Where Morelos reacted badly, Kent took confidence from the knowledge he was a wanted man.
Marcelo Bielsa’s admiration for him won’t be affected one way or another by how he plays against Kilmarnock. Yet reports suggest he will return to the table with an offer of £14m this week, and days like this show why.
Gerrard tip-toed his way around talk of a release clause in the £7m deal Kent signed 12 months ago. Yet the Rangers boss is crystal clear on what he expects from his players surrounded by transfer speculation.
‘Speculation at a club like Rangers is normal,’ said Gerrard. ‘It is not ideal but you have to accept it. The most important thing is the players stay hungry and stay focused. I only want players who are hungry for the shirt and want to do a job.’
The message to Morelos was unambiguous. New signing Kemar Roofe overcame the mis-spelling of his name on the back of his first starting jersey to hit the post with a header then open his account five minutes into the second half.
Cedric Itten slashed a shot over the bar after 19 minutes and, in truth, his day didn’t improve much thereafter.
Yet, with both new strikers edging closer to match sharpness, Morelos no longer looks like the must-have accessory of old.
Sources close to the South American insist he has done everything right. There was no public transfer request.
He waited patiently for Rangers to accept Lille’s offer. The danger now is that the offer is gone and Rangers are left with a bitterly unhappy player.
The only blessing for Rangers, amidst all the talk of Morelos and Kent, is that no one has tried to turn the head of Borna Barisic.
After a poor quality first half, the best left-back in the SPFL took the game by the scruff of the neck.
Given the run of the left flank early in the second half, the Croatian’s outstanding crossing teed up a chance for Roofe to head against the upright after 48 minutes.
Kilmarnock failed to heed the warning and, within two minutes, another low Barisic centre found the new signing from Anderlecht once more.
This time Roofe peeled off his man and swept home his first Rangers goal from 12 yards.
Rangers sealed the points with 13 minutes to play, captain James Tavernier driving into the area to have a half-volley blocked bravely by Aaron Tshibola. Tavernier nudged the loose ball sideways for Kent to calmly sidefoot the second goal into the net from 12 yards.
While attention focuses on bids for attacking players, the Ibrox defence go quietly about their business.
For the first time since 1929, Rangers have now gone five opening league games without conceding a goal.
‘Of course you feel very proud of such an achievement,’ said defender Filip Helander after strolling through the 90 minutes.
‘You have to understand it’s not just about the defenders and goalkeeper, everyone is working hard in training. ‘There is a real focus on what we’re trying to do defensively. We are trying to play the same way, even if it is with different people.’ The Swede is finally over the injury nightmare which followed the Betfred Cup final defeat to Celtic and partnered Connor Goldson in the absence of the injured Leon Balogun. ‘At the moment, it’s me and Connor, but Leon started the season and George (Edmundson) still has to come in too,’ continued Helander. ‘There is genuine competition and that is better and better for the players. ‘Guys coming in tend to adapt very quickly and that is down to the hard work we are putting in. ‘Kilmarnock defended in a low block, so it was difficult at times. As defenders, we tried to help the offensive players and we played much better in the second half. ‘We were able to relax after we scored the first.’ Every statistic needs some
context. Neither Livingston or Kilmarnock showed much desire to attack Rangers at all and, already, this looks like the pattern of the season. For both Gerrard and Neil Lennon, there is a weekly challenge to find a way to break down densely-packed, organised defences. Defending might be the last of their worries.
‘We know we’re not going to be able to keep clean sheets every week,’ added Helander. ‘The way we are playing just now we feel as though one goal will be enough.’