Glasgow Rangers head coach Russell Martin revealed that Hamza Igamane was unable to come on as a substitute against St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.
The Light Blues were held to a 1-1 draw away from Ibrox, needing a goal from substitute Findlay Curtis, and they were unable to call upon the Morocco international from the bench.
Speaking after the game, Martin said: “We had a bid this week for Hamza, we rejected it. All was fine. Trained fine yesterday [Saturday], warmed up fine. I turned around to him at 60 minutes because I wanted two strikers on the pitch. Hamza told me he was injured.”
With just under a week left to go before the end of the summer transfer window, it will be interesting to see what the future has in store for the Moroccan frontman.
Euro club make approach for Rangers striker
Whilst Martin has already confirmed that an offer has been rejected for Igamane, there is no concrete interest from a European club in one of their other forwards.
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According to L’Arena, as relayed by Calcio Hellas, Serie A side Hellas Verona have approached Rangers about a deal to sign Cyriel Dessers before the end of the window.
The report claims that the Italian outfit are looking for a loan whilst the Gers want a permanent exit for the Nigeria international, and that a compromise could be made with a loan leading to an obligation to buy next summer.
It adds that the experienced forward would cost a fee of around £3.4m, but it remains to be seen whether or not Hellas Verona will press ahead with a deal at that valuation.
Why Rangers should cash in on Cyriel Dessers
Whilst it is not exactly how these situations work, Rangers should look to cash in on Dessers ahead of Igamane if possible, as he is a worse option in the centre-forward position for this season.
If the Gers can get the Morocco international on board with Martin’s project, Rangers could have an electrifying striker who could be a real difference-maker in the final third.
Dessers, meanwhile, has been the first-choice striker for two seasons at Ibrox and has blown hot and cold. Former Aberdeen chief Keith Wyness went as far as to describe him as “marmite”, “invisible”, and “frustrating” for supporters.
The Nigerian forward has scored 34 goals in the Scottish Premiership for Rangers in just over two years at the club, but the underlying numbers suggest that Igamane has the potential to offer even more to the team as the main number nine.
Appearances
35
33
Goals
18
12
Big chances missed
20
6
Big chances created
2
10
Assists
2
1
Ground duel success rate
34%
40%
Aerial duel success rate
32%
39%
Dribbles completed per game
0.3
1.3
As you can see in the table above, Igamane was significantly more efficient with the ‘big chances’ that came his way, whilst being more creative, more effective in duels, and offering more as a ball carrier.
These statistics suggest that the Moroccan star, who played off the left wing at times, could offer more to the team as a clinical goalscorer and a creative threat as the main number nine ahead of Dessers at Ibrox.
This means that a move to Hellas Verona for the former Cremonese marksman could open the door for Igamane to be the main man up front for Rangers, which could provide him with a platform to showcase his talents and attract even more interest in future transfer windows.
Martin could make that point to the striker and dangle the carrot of being the main man for the Light Blues this season in a post-Dessers world, despite interest from elsewhere in the current window, in an attempt to keep him at Ibrox.
Therefore, in an ideal world, Rangers could cash in on Dessers and tempt Igamane to commit to the team as the main man. However, life is not always simple, and there could be a world where the Light Blues lose both of them in the next six days, which would be far from ideal.