BBC journo shares 'Harsh Reality' verdict on Rangers ace after what's happened

Nick McPheat believes Philippe Clement “needs more” from Cyriel Dessers if Rangers want to mount a title challenge this season.

The Nigeria international may well be the Gers’ top scorer this term but that doesn’t excuse the many missed chances he’s had thus far.

Writing for the BBC Sport website (15 November), BBC journalist McPheat shared the “harsh reality” that Rangers are facing this season.

“Cyriel Dessers, who has 10 goals this term across all competitions, often faces intense scrutiny for those missed opportunities,” he wrote.

“The striker scored the winning goal [last] Sunday and Rangers’ Europa League equaliser at Olympiakos, but he also passed up several chances in both games.

“Following the win over Hearts, Clement defended the forward by saying ‘a striker who scores every game for Rangers will not stay very long’.

“But the harsh reality is the Belgian still needs more from his first-choice striker, whoever it is, as well as the rest of his team if they are to stand any chance of mounting a title challenge”.

Cyriel Dessers can’t be the first-choice striker at Rangers

If you just looked at Dessers’ goal contributions, you’d think he was one of the best strikers in the Scottish Premiership.

Last season the Nigeria international bagged 22 goals and also chipped in with nine assists across all competitions.

This season hasn’t been much different, either, with the 29-year-old contributing to 13 goals already.

However, when watching him on the pitch, he often looks like a lost puppy and four out of five chances will usually go wayward of the goal.

Indeed, Philippe Clement hasn’t had many options to lead his attacking line this season due to Danilo’s injury history and the unreadiness of Hamza Igamane, but that still doesn’t mean that Dessers should take his foot off the gas.

If the Gers are serious about challenging Celtic and now even Aberdeen for the title, they need to acquire the services of a number nine who knows how to find the back of the net consistently, otherwise it feels like they’ll never have that finishing touch to take them over the line.

In other Rangers news, Tom English has shared his verdict on where the imminent future of Philippe Clement lies.

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