3 minute read
9/2/2022 | 04:35pm
Rangers will be looking to make it back-to-back wins in the Premiership as Gio van Bronckhorst’s side return to action at Ibrox tonight.
The Gers bounced back from their 3-0 defeat to Celtic in the Old Firm with an emphatic 5-0 win over Hearts and now host Hibernian on Wednesday night.
Alfredo Morelos (two), Scott Arfield, Glen Kamara and Fashion Sakala scored the goals at the weekend, whilst Aaron Ramsey came off the bench to make his debut for the club.
Will Rangers beat Hibs?
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How many changes will Gio make from that clash? Here is our predicted XI…
We are predicting that he will make three alterations to the side, with Borna Barisic, Glen Kamara and Fashion Sakala all coming in.
Whilst the Gers were sublime in their win over Hearts, van Bronckhorst may want to make a few changes to keep the team fresh whilst they are playing three games a week.
At left-back, Barisic could be offered the chance to show a reaction to losing his spot at the weekend. Calvin Bassey started ahead of him, with Leon Balogun moving into a central position next to Connor Goldson, and the £6.4k-per-week gem could now be axed from the side to accommodate that Croatian international.
In the Premiership this season, he has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.30. This shows that he has been excellent for the majority of the campaign and deserves the opportunity to come back in to show that he can get back to his best after a costly error against Celtic last week.
John Lundstram should keep his place in midfield alongside Scott Arfield, but there will be a change at the base of the team with Ryan Jack having been ruled out through injury. Kamara came off the bench to score at the weekend and he could slot straight into the number six role tonight.
Finally, Sakala could come in for Joe Aribo, who lost nine of his 11 ground duels and failed to register a goal or assist. This could open the door for his Zambian teammate to come in, with the 24-year-old having scored six goals from seven Premiership starts this season.
He has also created 1.1 chances per game as he has been able to offer a big threat in the final third since arriving in the summer. Van Bronckhorst may be tempted to hand him a start on the right wing, particularly after he came off the bench to score against Hearts.
We are predicting that the rest of the team will remain the same, with Allan McGregor, James Tavernier, Goldson, Balogun, Lundstram, Arfield, Ryan Kent and Morelos keeping their places.
AND in other news, Major blow: Rangers dealt late injury twist that’ll leave Ibrox fans fuming…
