da dobrowin: As reported by The Scottish Sun, Rangers are interested in bringing Motherwell’s Louis Moult to Ibrox this summer in a cash plus player deal that would see Michael O’Halloran go the other way.
da bet nacional: Light Blues boss Pedro Caixinha faces a summer of significant rebuilding and bringing in a striker of quality that can bag 20 goals at least next season should be one of his big priorities.
It’s fair to say the likes of Martyn Waghorn and Joe Garner didn’t exactly hit the heights in the Scottish Premiership that fans hoped for this season.
Moult appears, on the face of it, to be an attractive option: he’s scored 36 goals over the last two seasons for the Steelmen, after all, and 18 of them this time around.
However we reckon there are better options that could be within Rangers’ reach.
Here are FOUR strikers we think Caixinha should be looking at instead…
Liam Boyce
Liam Boyce is the only player outside of Celtic to score more Scottish Premiership goals than Louis Moult this season. The Motherwell striker hit 15 league goals across the campaign while Ross County’s Boyce rattled home an impressive 23, more than any other player in the entire league.
It’s hardly a fluke either considering he also banged in 20 goals last season too. The Light Blues badly need someone in with his consistent ability to find the net against top-flight clubs.
At just 26 years of age he is coming into his prime years and we wouldn’t expect him to command a fee out with Rangers’ reach, especially when you consider he has just a year left on his contract in Dingwall.
Why go for Moult when you can get a player who scores more goals and provides more all-round for his team?
Oliver McBurnie
Oliver McBurnie is a name you may not have heard of quite yet but someone who has a very bright future in the game both at club level and for the Scotland national team. A Scottish international at U19 and U21 level, he’s progressing very well for Swansea City and looks set to make an impact at first team level soon enough whether for the Swans or on loan elsewhere next season.
He won the Player Of The Season award in Premier League 2, the English U21 league, just this week after a fantastic haul of 23 goals across the campaign, beating the likes of Liverpool’s youngest ever goalscorer Ben Woodburn and recent Manchester United breakthrough star Axel Tuanzebe.
Despite that, it is of course tough to break into a Premier League side and convince managers you deserve a regular game, when the stakes are so high and when clubs like Swansea can go out and spend tens of millions of pounds.
Having only been on short-term loans in the past, a season-long move to a club to a Championship side or someone like Rangers would surely only enhance his ability and chances of making it at the Welsh club.
Sam Gallagher
A former Scotland youth international who actually made a switch to England, Sam Gallagher is a player who has benefited from loan football this season. His parent club Southampton sent him to Blackburn Rovers in the Championship this season and while ultimately it ended in disaster when they were relegated to League One, Gallagher picked up plenty of appearances and reached double figures in the league, also scoring in the FA Cup.
With the likes of Manolo Gabbiadini at St Mary’s, his opportunity for first team football is limited and at the age of 21, needs continued regular football if he’s to fully reach his potential.
Rangers, like with Oliver McBurnie, should at least explore the possibility of taking him on loan in the summer. It would be a different experience for the young striker than the English Championship and he may even get the chance to experience UEFA Europa League football with Pedro Caixinha’s side aiming to run the gauntlet of the summer qualifiers.
Jason Cummings
Jason Cummings is a household name amongst Scottish football supporters but he has yet to prove himself in the Scottish Premiership. Where better to do it than with a team who will provide him with chance after chance in the final third?
We know he has the finishing ability to be a consistent goalscorer, he’s scored 69 goals across the last three seasons in the Scottish Championship.
It may prove difficult to convince Hibs to part with him as they aim to make a splash of their own in the Scottish top-flight but it could also be a move worth perservering with. At the age of just 21, he’s one of the brightest young striking prospects in the country, like a future international, and Ibrox could do with a Scottish hero to bang in the goals.