Rangers suffer huge Alfredo Morelos blow before facing Celtic

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - FEBRUARY 24: Alfredo Morelos of Rangers is seen in action during the UEFA Europa League Knockout Round Play-Offs Leg Two match between Rangers FC and Borussia Dortmund at Ibrox Stadium on February 24, 2022 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - FEBRUARY 24: Alfredo Morelos of Rangers is seen in action during the UEFA Europa League Knockout Round Play-Offs Leg Two match between Rangers FC and Borussia Dortmund at Ibrox Stadium on February 24, 2022 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Rangers will know that they cannot afford to lose when they welcome Celtic to Ibrox after the international break. Ange Postecoglou’s side have been relentless in the league when it comes to getting results, whether they play well or not. And as a result, while Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side had a 6-point lead coming out of the winter break, now, it is them who are chasing, with the Hoops 3 points ahead of them.

Thus, if Celtic end up winning at Ibrox, it will open up a 6-point lead of their own and that might be too steep of a mountain to climb for the Rangers, with just 6 more league games left to be played after that.

Celtic should have a lot of confidence coming into the game, having dominated their way to a 3-0 win in the previous Glasgow Derby, which was played at Parkhead.

And heading into the game, the Rangers have been handed a massive blow, as it has emerged that Alfredo Morelos has a thigh injury and he has been sent back by his national team. As reported by The Scotsman, the Colombian FA released a statement which read:

"“The technical and medical staff of the Colombia Men’s Senior National Team reports that, after performing medical tests on player Alfredo Morelos, a muscle injury in the left thigh was confirmed, which prevented him from participating in the previous match against Bolivia and likewise does not allow him to participate in the next match of the Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.“For this reason, the striker is called off to start his recovery work. We wish the player a good return to his club.”"

Rangers suffer Morelos blow ahead of Celtic game

Morelos had missed Colombia’s previous match against Bolivia, but back then, it was believed that it was due to muscular fatigue. But now, it appears that the Rangers striker has a muscle injury on his left thigh.

The situation is far from ideal for the Rangers to say the least. While Morelos’ record against Celtic has been poor over the years, the Colombian has been a key player for the Ibrox side this season.

It remains to be seen whether Morelos recovers in time. When it comes to Celtic, they must have all eyes on themselves and their own preparations. A win at Ibrox would be massive. Even a draw would be a pretty positive result though.