Jason Jones

Mon 6 July 2020 7:00, UK

Rangers Nikola Katic is facing a potential operation after picking up a cruciate injury in preseason training.

The club confirmed the complaint with a statement on Sunday evening.

The Croatia centre-back is understood to have suffered the injury at some point a couple of weeks ago, and is expected to be sidelined for a significant period of time.

There is no concrete indication of how long the 23-year-old will be out for, but an official statement from Rangers reads: “The injury was sustained more than a week ago and will keep him out of action for the foreseeable future.”

The Scottish Sun go on to report that the injury could force Steven Gerrard into the transfer market this summer, with Katic described as a “key” part of the manager’s defensive plans.

His absence leaves the Gers with just Filip Helander, Connor Goldson, and George Edmundson as senior central defensive options going into the new season, which is set to start in August.

How much of a blow is this for Rangers?

It’s certainly not good news, put it that way.

First and foremost, cruciate injuries can be nasty and have a major effect on a player’s career, so we wish Nikola all the best in his recovery.

From mid-December onwards, the Croatian played 90 minutes in all but three of Rangers’ Scottish Premiership matches last term, and there’s no doubt that he probably would have featured regularly this time around too.

With just three senior centre-backs at his disposal now, and with the season due to start in less than a month, it really wouldn’t be too much of a surprise to see Gerrard make a move for another option in that position in the coming weeks.

If the Gers are serious about hitting the ground running next season then they need to make sure that they have all eventualities covered, and that means making sure that they have the personnel to cope with an injury like this one.

In other Rangers news, Ibrox View: Stats suggest Bassey could challenge for Rangers starting role in near future.