Rangers legend and Record Sport columnist Barry Ferguson reckons under-fire Philippe Clement cannot afford a defeat at Pittodrie tonight if he wants to remain in the Premiership title race.
The Light Blues already trail Celtic and Aberdeen at the top of the table by six points, with the recent 1-0 defeat away to Kilmarnock still fresh in the memory for many of the Ibrox faithful. The Gers go into the game off the back of consecutive wins against St Mirren in the league and over Steaua Bucharest in Europe but former skipper Ferguson believes his old club need the victory to keep their title hopes alive.
Speaking to gambling.com, he said: “What Rangers can’t allow to happen is Aberdeen to go nine points clear or for the gap to stay at six points. Rangers need to make sure it comes down to three points. it’s important that they start picking up victories. They had a disappointing result against Kilmarnock away from home. Kilmarnock thoroughly deserved it. It’s going to be a big test against Aberdeen.
“You can never rule out the league. That’s your bread and butter. Even if you’re six points behind at this early stage in the season, you can never give up.
“Your priority is the league. Rangers, of course, are behind at this moment in time. They’ll need to fight really hard, but you can never give up. That has got to be their number one aim – to finish on top at the end of the season.”
Elsewhere, Gers midfielder Ianis Hagi has emerged as a loan target for Ligue 1 side Strasbourg – according to a report. The playmaker was initially frozen out of the first team picture at Rangers by Philippe Clement after returning from a season-long loan spell with Alaves in La Liga, but has been handed a reprieve by the Belgian.
The Romania international marked his return for the Gers by getting sent on in a 2-0 victory against St Johnstone earlier this month but could be included from the start in tonight’s huge clash with red-hot Aberdeen at Pittodrie. According to French outlet onlymercato.com, Strasbourg – who are part of Chelsea owner Todd Boehly’s BlueCo consortium – are planning a loan swoop for the 26-year-old in January.
They claim that talks are set to take place in the coming weeks with the club keen to bolster their midfield options in the second half of the season. The Alsace club have made a decent start to the campaign under former Derby County and Hull City boss Liam Rosenior and sit ninth in the Ligue 1 table after nine matches.
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