Steven Gerrard has been dealt a blow in recent days with the news that Kemar Roofe could be out for another few weeks despite initially thinking that he had suffered nothing more than a bit of tightness in his calf.
As a result, Rangers have been tipped to enter the loan market by Noel Whelan so that they don’t see a repeat of previous seasons where they have run out of forwards, in an interview with Football Insider.
So what has Whelan said?
When asked if he thinks that the Light Blues would need reinforcements should Alfredo Morelos leave the club, taking Roofe’s injury into consideration, he said:
“They either have to keep Morelos which right now, they’re doing a good job of keeping him happy, he seems to be in a good place while he’s playing.
“No one seems to be putting in any concrete offers for him so right now Steven Gerrard will be very, very happy with how things are going. Obviously missing Kemar Roofe, a long-term new signing, it’s the last thing you want when you bring a player in, but Jermain Defoe is back as well.
“On one hand it’s bad news, on the other hand it’s great news having Defoe back in the squad, we know what he’s like as a goalscorer, probably better than Kemar Roofe, but you need to keep him fit as well.
“That’s the danger, if you lose Kemar Roofe and Jermain Defoe, you’ve got no backup to Morelos, so you’re maybe going into the window, maybe keeping one eye on a loan transfer in the best interests of Rangers right now.”
So is Whelan correct?
He certainly makes a valid point, if Morelos does leave, Gerrard will probably be looking to replace him anyway with one eye on the long-term future of Jermain Defoe – he won’t be around forever.
Was it a gamble to sign a player with Roofe's recent injury history?
Yes
No
Whelan forgets that Cedric Itten has also joined the club, so at the moment, the gaffer has a decent selection of strikers at his disposal, so much so that the Swiss international has struggled to get any consistent game time.
Roofe, Itten and Defoe give a variety of options but you wouldn’t want to be putting all your eggs in the basket of a player that missed a large part of last season though a similar injury to the one that is keeping him out just now, Whelan is right, a loan signing would make sense, Premier League teams are full of players looking for game time – especially with a major tournament coming up at the end of the season.