Alfredo can learn to cool it the way I did, says Hateley
MARK HATELEY was an angry young centreforward a long way from home and sorely in need of supervision to channel his aggressive instincts in the right manner.
So when he watches Steven Gerrard up close with Alfredo Morelos, the former Rangers hero hopes the impact is identical to his recovery from an explosive, ill-disciplined start at AC Milan.
As part-time St Joseph’s from Gibraltar prepare to be the first opponents of a new season to poke and prod at the patience of Morelos, Hateley is living proof of the capacity for curbing and curing those ruinous instincts.
For after racing to a red card for a headbutt on his first competitive appearance at the San Siro as a 22-year-old new to Italian football, the inexperienced Englishman simply had to get a grip.
The man doing the steering there in 1984 was a Swede, Nils Liedholm, whom Hateley credits with moulding him into the mean Milan goal machine that became such a fans’ favourite.
He explained: ‘It is possible to change — you just have to find a way to channel the aggression in a different direction.
‘I’m the best example I know of that. I got sent off in my first home game for Milan, in the Coppa Italia, for heading-butting Brescia’s centre-half.
‘I was 22, similar to Alfredo. You do daft things when you’re young — and you live to regret them.
‘But the manager we had at the time helped me discover a better way to be.
‘Nils Liedholm, who played centre-forward for Sweden in the 1958 World Cup final against Brazil, was a great example for me.
‘He explained things to me, taught me how to play as a European striker and how to approach everything.
‘He was a typical Swede, laidback, wise, well-spoken. He was a great tutor, teaching me how not to lash out but to use my energy in protecting the ball more, to focus on denying the opponent.’
Hateley recovered from that inauspicious start to score key goals for Milan in the opening
Liedholm taught me not to lash out but focus on denying the opponent
months of his first season since signing from Portsmouth.
By October, he took his reputation to another level with an iconic headed goal past legendary Italian keeper Walter Zenga, which clinched a derby-day victory over Inter.
For all that Morelos has proved a prolific talent for Rangers, disciplinary problems have dogged him throughout his first two seasons in Scotland.
And he is yet to score against Celtic, with his foolish red card at Parkhead in March for elbowing Scott Brown typical of the trouble he has caused manager Gerrard.
The Rangers boss said he couldn’t defend the Colombian any longer following that fifth sendingoff of the campaign.
Morelos was by far the worst culprit of a desperate disciplinary record at the club of 59 yellow and six red cards in the league and a further three dismissals in Europe. Gerrard has introduced a new code of conduct for 2019-20, but Hateley notes that the manager’s personal touch with Morelos will prove the best preventative measure.
‘The disciplinary side of it let Morelos down last year, but I’d look for that to improve greatly,’ said Hateley.
‘I’ve watched Steven with Alfredo, he’s all over him. Steven had his own moments as a player and has learned from them. And he’ll know that he can’t take all the fire away.
‘But he also knows he has to find a way of channelling that in a way that keeps Alfredo on the pitch — and keeps him effective. ‘He’ll score goals, whatever club he’s at — and that is a problem because he’s in demand and there’s a long way to go until the transfer window closes.
‘Everyone has a number, that’s the way of football these days. Alfredo, whether he stays or goes, will only get better.’
Gerrard admitted he was too soft on those suspended stars who let down Rangers in his first season as a manager.
With that aspect among many lessons learned in year one, Hateley is convinced his club will make major strides towards Celtic in the months to come.
‘They’re even better prepared this year, Steven’s a quick learner,’ asserted Hateley. ‘I think he had a great first season, considering the amount of upheaval.
‘This season he’s focusing on the quality that will lift this group to the next level. And the spending probably hasn’t finished either. I’m excited to see what we’ve seen already this summer and I expect to see more and better — whether it’s in this window or the next.
‘He’s putting deep thought into everything he does at the moment, there’s a reason behind everything he and Mark Allen (Rangers’ director of football) are doing.’