Gerrard: Meeting that led to my ‘man-of-match’ Morelos
● Boss delighted as striker bounces back after private chat following European exit ● ‘He should have won sponsors’ award’
Steven Gerrard watched Alfredo Morelos score his first goals at Ibrox since last year before admitting he had taken the striker aside for a private meeting following his listless display against Bayer Leverkusen last week.
Morelos bounced back from what he admitted to Gerrard had been a poor performance against the Germans to score twice in yesterday’s 3-0 home win over St Mirren.
He also had a hand in the other goal after defender Conor Mccarthy turned the
Colombian’s cross into his own net for the opener midway through the first half.
Gerrard was delighted with Morelos’ response following a midweek display that some speculated might have been his last in a Rangers shirt. He was in his usual position at the head of the Ibrox attack yesterday and discovered his goalscoring touch with a second-half double on a good day for his side, who saw Celtic drop two points later in the day against Kilmarnock.
Surprisingly, Morelos was not given the sponsors’ man of the match award, which went to left-back Borna Barisic instead. “He certainly deserved the man of the match,” said Gerrard. “He definitely gets my vote. His all-round game was good. I thought his focus was really strong.
“When you’ve got that talent and you approach the game in the right way, then your numbers are going to come. He got a good assist [as well], so that’s two for the seson, and two goals. But I thought his all-round play deserved those numbers.”
Gerrard revealed that Morelos had admitted his own performance fell short of what
was required last Thursday night as Rangers made a meek exit from Europe after an otherwise memorable campaign.
“We spoke to the whole group about Thursday’s performance,” said Gerrard. “I think you’ve got to take into consideration the level of the opposition and where we’re at.
But that’s the level we’re trying to strive for.
“We spoke about the whole group and how the all-round performance had to be better.
“I did have a private chat with Alfredo about his own performance,” he added. “He acknowledged the fact that he could have been better.
“But he wasn’t the only one. I think as a group we could have been better on Thursday night. He certainly showed great action today, though. From the first whistle until the end, it was a really strong Morelos performance.”
Morelos was replaced by recent signing Cedric Itten after 74 minutes with Gerrard claiming he was never tempted to leave the striker on to attempt to score his first Ibrox league hat-trick. “You don’t get anything for hat-tricks,” he said.
“Three points and a clean sheet. Offload because we have another game in three days’ time. I’m not interested in hat-tricks.”
With Morelos back scoring, Jermain Defoe due back in training this week, Itten making his debut yesterday and another new recruit, Kemar Roofe, set to step up to full training soon, Rangers look well set in attack.
Speculation about Morelos’ future will continue, however, with Lille still being linked with the player. Asked if the French club had made another bid, Gerrard replied: “Not that I am aware of.”
Gerrard explained that goalkeeper Allan Mcgregor’s omission against St Mirren was because he had picked up a knock against Bayer Leverkusen.
The manager expects him to be fit for Wednesday’s clash with St Johnstone at Ibrox. Former Hearts goalkeeper Jon Mclaughlin deputised as he made his competitive debut for the club.