Ibrox View: Shankland could be sharp enough to replace potential Rangers departure Morelos
Rangers are very probably going to have to find themselves a new striker this summer.
The Gers look set to lose Alfredo Morelos, with the Colombian himself being pretty open about his willingness to seek a new challenge on the continent this summer.
And one man whose name has come up on more than one occasion as a potential replacement is Lawrence Shankland.
Ex-Ibrox favourite Andy Halliday openly admitted that he would love to see him make the switch from Dundee United, while The Scotsman have included him on a list of nine targets they believe the Gers could pursue in the coming weeks.
But could he really be the man to replace El Bufalo?
His stats are certainly something.
Shankland has hit 0.93 goals per game this season, as per Wyscout – a tally which is 0.23 better than Morelos’.
Perhaps most impressive is the fact that he managed that total from an xG of just 0.59, meaning that he scored 0.34 goals per game more than he was expected to.
As a point of reference, Morelos’ 0.7 per game came from an xG of 0.7, and Shankland managed his tally despite having 1.36 shots fewer per game.
A fine example of just how potent he is came in his hat-trick turn against Partick Thistle back in January.
Shankland had an xG of just 0.97 in that game, but scored three, and might have had more were two of his efforts not blocked, as can be seen above.
One strike in particular stood out though.
Shankland picks the ball up a mile away from goal, and is soundly outnumbered by Thistle defenders.
But his run his confident and direct.
As you can see above, he travels a ludicrous distance, toying with three defenders as he goes.
More than once he fakes to shoot, and by the time he is in a position to actually have a strike, the opposition backline is all at sea.
Even at that stage he still has a lot to do though, and full credit to him for firing in a pinpoint accurate finish low and hard into the bottom corner.
It’s top, top stuff, and exactly the kind of predatory instinct that Morelos has shown throughout his career at Ibrox.
If he does leave, the Gers could do a whole lot worse than taking a gamble on Shankland to replace him.
In other Rangers news, Ibrox Exclusive: Alex Bruce claims Ryan Kent can be ‘big asset’ for Gers in ‘huge’ 20/21.