A powerful, burly centre-forward with an eye for goal – it’s easy to see why some Rangers fans are making comparisons between Hamza Igamane and Alfredo Morelos.
But while there are similarities with how they look on the pitch, the differences off it couldn’t be much starker. At 22-year-old, Igamane has so far come across as a humble, almost shy figure since finding himself caught in the glare of the Old Firm spotlight following his move to Scotland from Morocco. That hasn’t stopped him capturing the attention of the Light Blues legions, though, with his rapid progress already providing 13 goals for Philippe Clement’s team.
But there is a contrast to be made with Morelos, the tempestuous Colombian talisman who at times allowed his hot-headed nature to get the better of him while dealing with those same intense pressures. For every moment where he lit up Ibrox, there was another where Morelos’ darker side lead him into bother.
As characters they may be different, but there’s no doubt Igamane is the most dangerous frontman Gers have had on their books since prime Morelos was tearing up the Europa League for Steven Gerrard’s side. Now it’s down to Clement to ensure Igamane’s career does not fizzle out in the same way the combustible South American’s did.
As one of the few men at Ibrox to have played with both strikers, Ianis Hagi is well place to assess Igamane’s potential – and he has vowed to do all he can to ensure Rangers’ new hero fulfils it. Hagi said: “Are they natural goalscorers? Yes, they are.
“Are they different in terms of qualities? Probably, yes. As a striker, when you sign for Rangers, you need to score goals. And at the moment, Hamza’s doing that, and we need to keep him fit and work for him.
“Obviously, myself and the other players that play behind him, trying to create as many opportunities for him as possible. And yes, as I said, hopefully he’ll stay fit, and he’ll definitely score goals. Everybody has a different character. It’s not just Buff or Hamza. Everybody has its own character.
“Obviously, he’s a young lad, and hopefully guys like myself and other players who have more experience can help him whenever he has tough situations or certain situations where he didn’t really face before. So yes, hopefully we can help him as much as possible, and as long as he scores goals, then that’s what we need.”
Rangers allowed a potentially lucrative cash cow to waddle out the door when an out-of-shape Buffalo quit Ibrox on a free at the end of his contract in the summer of 2023. That’s a mistake Gers’ cash-strapped board will be desperate to avoid repeating.
The pressure on Igamane to keep scoring will grow and grow – but Hagi has no doubts the youngster has the broad shoulders needed to bear that load. “Yes, 100 percent,” said the Romanian playmaker. “I don’t think there’s many players around the world that can cope with this type of pressure, where you have to perform and win, not only perform.
“Here you have to perform and win every three days, it’s tough. So at 22, to be able to do that, you can’t really find it around the world that much. And those who can cope, then obviously they can achieve so much moving forward.”
Clement will be looking for his team to build some more momentum ahead of next week’s Old Trafford trip. It’s been a difficult period for the beleaguered Belgian, with spilled points in four consecutive away games leading to fan protests and discussions on his future with new Gers CEO Patrick Stewart.
But since being given the vote of confidence, his team has now responded with back-to-back wins over St Johnstone and Aberdeen. They now have Sunday’s Scottish Cup opener against Highland League minnows Fraserburgh before heading south of the border for next week’s glamour Europa League tie with English giants Manchester United.
For all that Rubin Amorim’s team are struggling this term, the clash promises to be a huge test for Gers – but Hagi hopes his side are heading in the right direction. Asked for his thoughts on Wednesday’s 3-0 win over the Dons, he said: “OK, it brings me back to what I said after the Celtic game, that we need to be consistent during 90 minutes.
“And these are the type of performances that we think it’s a step forward, and we’ve been consistent for 90 minutes, and we played defensively, offensively, how we planned. And it’s a game that, for us, we have to look back at it and play this type of game on every few days. And this is probably the challenge for us going forward.
“Obviously, when you play these type of games and there’s so many chances, everybody looks in that offensive part, they’re dominating the offensive part. But I think we dominated defensively as well. I think the team played really well, starting from Hamza through to Liam Kelly.
“I think as a team, we played the way we wanted, and that’s what I said. I think we’ve been consistent for 90 minutes, offensively, defensively, and moving forward, that’s what we want to produce every three days.”
Clement named the same team for the second game running – and Hagi reckons he’s close to really clicking with attacking partners Igamane, Danilo and Vaclav Cerny. He said: “I think it helps when you play every three days. For myself, my first start for Rangers this season was December 1, so just a month and a half ago.
“So I’m still trying to learn all the movements that my teammates do, and right now I’m enjoying my football. I feel like I’m gelling quite well with everyone.
“But more than this, as a player, you have to do your best, and no matter the situation, afterwards, the decisions of the technical staff, the manager, whenever they think it’s best for that certain game, and as a player, you have to adapt and make the best out of it.”
Tale of the Tape
| Alfredo Morelos | Hamza Igamane | |
| Nationality | Colombian | Moroccan |
| Fee | £1million | £1.7million |
| Games | 269 | 25 |
| Goals | 124 | 13 |