The easy shout when Rangers aren’t scoring freely is to point at the forwards. But the numbers you’ve pulled out hint at something a bit more awkward: we might be creating plenty, yet too many of the wrong shots are landing at the wrong feet.

And before we even get to finishing, there’s a separate issue that feeds into it. We’re still lacking that proper central midfielder who can control a game and dictate the pace. Someone who calms the play down when it’s frantic, speeds it up when it’s there to be attacked, and generally makes our attacking phases feel like a plan rather than a series of moments.

When “shots” don’t tell you the full story

xG gets thrown about like it’s a verdict, but it’s only useful if you’re honest about where chances are coming from. You’ve made the key point: you need to look at who is actually taking the shots, not just blame the striker because they’re the striker.

You mention Rangers being top on shots on goal, yet sitting around 7th or 8th for conversion. That gap usually means one of two things, or a bit of both: either the chances aren’t great quality, or the shooting decisions and execution aren’t good enough.

The midfield are getting looks, but not punishing teams

This is where your breakdown gets interesting. For the forwards, you list Miovski (18/9/16.7%) and Chermiti (18/10/11.1%). Not perfect numbers, but not a total disaster either, especially if the service is scrappy or the shots are coming under pressure.

Then you look at others and it starts to feel like the bigger problem is spread across the side. Gassama (39/12/2.6%) jumps off the page. Raskin (21/4/4.8%) surprised you, and I can see why. Barron (12/3/0%) and Dio (17/4/5.9%) aren’t exactly screaming “goal threat” either. Meanwhile Tav (19/9/20.1%) is sitting there with one of the better conversion rates, which tells its own story about where our reliable finishing sometimes comes from.

So if midfielders are taking a decent chunk of the shots, but not hitting the target often and not scoring when they do, that’s a massive drag on overall conversion. It’s not just about “more shots”, it’s about better shots, from the right areas, taken by the right players.

What needs fixed: chance quality and decision-making

As you say yourself, this doesn’t even touch chance quality. But even without that, it points to a clear theme: our scoring issue is all over the park. We probably do need the strikers to be sharper, but we also need midfielders to improve their composure, shot selection, and end product.

For me it comes back to that controlling CM. If Rangers can manage tempo and build attacks with a bit more purpose, you’d hope we see fewer hopeful swipes from 20 yards and more clear chances falling to the players you actually want finishing them.

Written by Angus1812: 31 December 2025

Tags: squad