Chermiti’s showing yesterday, particularly after the break, genuinely looked like a different player. Not just a striker having one of those days where everything he hits flies in. It was the all-round stuff. The composure. The way he carried himself. You could almost feel the confidence coming off him as the second half went on.
It wasn’t only the finishing
For me, the big takeaway wasn’t simply that he looked like a threat in the box. It was how he used his body. He wasn’t getting bullied, he was doing the bullying. He took contact, rolled his man, and kept the ball moving rather than forcing it. That’s the sort of thing that separates a striker who scores from a striker who controls games for you.
And the passing side of it stood out. There was a bit of variety in his play, switching it, finding a simple option when it was on, and showing a wee bit of vision rather than treating every touch like it had to end in a shot. It makes a massive difference to how the team breathes when your forward can hold it up and bring others into it.
Strength, speed, calmness: the full package?
I know comparisons can get daft quickly, but I get the point about seeing bits of other forwards in there. You could see that mix of physical presence, a yard of pace, and then that calmness when it mattered. He didn’t look rushed. He didn’t look like he was trying to prove a point with every action. He just played.
That’s why the second half felt so encouraging. He looked like he understood when to pin a defender, when to run the channel, when to buy a foul, and when to keep the ball ticking. It’s basic striker craft, but it’s also exactly what we’ve been crying out for at times.
A bit of humility for the rest of us
Truth is, plenty of us have been guilty of jumping the gun, myself included. When a signing doesn’t hit the ground running, it’s easy to start muttering about fees and deals and whether it all stacks up. Yesterday was a reminder that development isn’t always linear, and sometimes a player just clicks when the team around him starts functioning properly.
If he gets a few more quality options around him, and he keeps building on that second-half standard, there’s every chance we’re looking at a proper striker for Rangers. No grand predictions needed. Just keep it going, keep adding layers to his game, and let’s see where it takes us. Fingers crossed.
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