ONLY having one fit striker, and one who looks set to be sold at that, a few days before the new season kicks off is a scenario which would have given Ally McCoist palpitations when he occupied the Rangers dugout and his side was making its way through the lower leagues.
But being in that position when you are expected to stop Celtic from winning 10-In-A-Row? It is little wonder McCoist is relieved he will be watching the Premiership from the altogether less stressful surroundings of the Sky Sports studio in the 2020/21 campaign.
The Ibrox club’s all-time record goalscorer, though, is confident that Steven Gerrard, the current incumbent of the hotseat, will be well prepared for the inevitable departure of his talismanic front man in the coming days and will have earmarked suitable replacements.
He is certainly confident there is a man who can lead the line for Rangers readily available, for the right fee, just along the M8 at Livingston in the shape of Lyndon Dykes.
“I’m a little bit surprised at the lack of striking options,” said McCoist. “But Steven is an intelligent guy, he knows his squad and knows his team. I’d be even more surprised if a replacement doesn’t come in in the near future.
“I would be staggered if he’s not got one or two irons in the fire. It’s an absolute certainty he’ll have a couple of strikers earmarked.
“I don’t have any doubt that if Morelos goes then Steven will have earmarked at least one centre-forward. Jermaine Defoe is out with a hamstring injury and that would mean he’ll be out for a minimum of two weeks anyway.”
Dykes has attracted the attention of both Australia, where he was born and brought up, and Scotland, where his mother and father hail from, as well as of Barnsley, who have had two bids for him rejected this month, after scoring 12 goals for Livingston last season.
Yet, McCoist feels parting with the £2m that it would take to secure the services of the 6ft 2in 24-year-old would be a shrewd piece of business by Rangers after Morelos has moved on.
“I’ve been saying for about a year that I would have gone and paid the money for Lyndon Dykes,” he said. “I think the big fella gives you something different. He’s strong, he’s aggressive, he’s quick and he’s scored goals against both Rangers and Celtic.
“I’ve never seen anyone recently give the Celtic defence problems the way he has. It’s a gamble, of course it is, but I would take the chance and maybe if Livingston get the right price would sell him.”
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