Fashion Sakala should be playing for Rangers in a more central role, behind the main striker according to his former national team boss.
Aljosa Asanovic was appointed to the Zambia post in January of this year but has since left the role – now he has made an unlikely claim on where to get the very best from the former Oostende man.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst has been tipped by the Croatian to take a risk in order to get the perceived rewards from playing Sakala in an alternate role. Asanovic’s opinion is based on his experiences of international football in Africa but that won’t be happening at Ibrox anytime soon. The infectious and popular character has plenty to offer on the pitch, as has been witnessed on the pitch in recent weeks and should retain his spot on the right wing through to the international break.
On that advice to Gio regarding Sakala, Asanovic commented:
“If I was the coach of Rangers, I know where he would play — and it wouldn’t be on the wing. The way Zambia played, Patson Daka of Leicester was my main striker, but Fashion was behind him as a No 10. Listen, I’m a coach, I understand the coach of Rangers will see it differently. He sees Fashion’s pace and uses it wide, I get why he does that.”
“But for us, he could make his runs beyond the striker and it was hard for opponents to deal with. On the wing, he has to expend energy going back to help my countryman Borna Barisic on the left, or the Rangers right-back.”
With his speed and low centre of gravity, the Zambian has shown his ability to be effective on the wing in recent games however the frustration is that he is a very unpredictable player who blows hot and cold. Despite that, he finds himself in the limelight and in demand. The breakthrough has come with Rangers struggling in the wide positions this season although Sakala was consistently overlooked in the early months of the season by GvB who does not see him as a striker.
His directness is a strong asset combined with real pace that can hurt opponents, Fashion Sakala must use those attributes to his and Rangers advantage.