I’m not really buying the idea that our striker is constantly finding great positions and the ball just never reaches him. Sometimes that’s true in football, but it can become a handy excuse if the movement itself isn’t quite right. For me, that’s the bigger issue with Chermiti: he’s improving, aye, but he still doesn’t consistently take up the positions you expect from a Rangers number 9.
The near-post habit that hurts us
Ally McCoist has mentioned it plenty, and he’s not saying it for the sake of it. The movement across the box looks a bit too predictable. He goes near post an awful lot, even in moments where the obvious danger area is the back post. It sounds like a small detail, but it’s the difference between a half-chance and a tap-in.
At this level, in this league, Rangers spend most weeks trying to break down organised blocks. You don’t always get four or five clean openings. So when the ball does come into the area, you need your striker thinking a step ahead: where’s the space going to be when the cross arrives, not where it is when the move starts. That’s the instinct we’re missing at times.
Coaching, yes. Time, not endless time
This isn’t a “write him off” rant, because it’s clear he is learning. His general play can look tidier and you can see a bit more confidence in how he competes. But Rangers can’t wait 50 games for a forward to click into place while a title race is happening in real time. That’s just the truth of it at Ibrox: development matters, but results matter more.
If you’re chasing trophies, you need a scorer in the building. Not a striker who might become a scorer later, after a long bedding-in period. That doesn’t mean you punt the lad out the door, it means you get him proper coaching and you add someone who can deliver now.
Keeping the right one, but still needing more
Out of the three strikers mentioned, I’m actually with the idea that Chermiti is the one to keep. But that comes with a massive caveat: Rangers still need a reliable goalscorer alongside him. The squad can’t be built on hope and “he’ll come good” alone.
And for what it’s worth, not all of us wanted Dessers away. Say what you like about his spell, but at least that conversation is rooted in one thing Rangers must have: goals. Everything else is secondary.
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