Ibrox View: New boy Itten looks like he could be real deal for Rangers
Rangers continue to make big moves in the transfer market.
After a busy period at the beginning of the summer, the Gers kept up their relentless pace with a double swoop on Tuesday.
In came Kemar Roofe from Anderlecht, and Cedric Itten from Swiss side St. Gallen.
Of the two, Roofe is almost certainly the more recognisable, and Ibrox News have already looked in detail at the kind of impact he can make in Glasgow.
But what of Itten? What kind of threat does he pose, and can he step up to the plate for the Bears?
The stat would definitely suggest so.
The 23-year-old struck 19 goals in 34 league outings in Switzerland last season, and while his finishing stats aren’t quite as sharp as Alfredo Morelos’, for instance, they are still pretty special.
El Bufalo set a ridiculously high standard with his irresistible form in 2019, but even taking that into consideration, Itten had an xG that was just 0.05 lower than the Colombian’s, as well as a goals per game rate that was 0.04 lower, and a shot accuracy that was just over 2% lower, as per Wyscout.
That’s really not bad going at all, and his lethal streak is clear to see in match situations.
In his last game for St. Gallen he scored a hat-trick and registered an assist in a 6-0 win for the club.
One, in particular, stood out though.
In the image above, Itten is the man circled.
Notice how he is already stood in an offside position – that’s almost definitely not an accident.
In fact, it’s a technique that Ruud van Nistelrooy was infamous for during his time with Manchester United.
It makes a striker almost impossible to track because doing so would completely negate the whole purpose of an offside trap, and the defensive shape that comes with it.
In short, it’s a simple, deliberate way to create havoc.
As the ball is finally played in, Itten has just slowed his run enough to get himself back in line, but the nearest defender is still wrong side of him, and that proves to be vital.
With nobody to get across the front of him, Itten is able to connect with a brilliant volley with absolutely no competition to put him off.
Even then though, he still has a lot to do.
To keep the effort down, but to still generate the power and accuracy to direct it into the bottom corner and past the keeper is nothing short of sublime.
This is a high class goal, and one that gets us very excited for the prospect of what can do in a Rangers shirt.
Honestly, we can’t wait to see the Switzerland international in action as soon as possible.
In other Rangers news, Darren Fletcher has backed this Gers talent for big season in 20/21 after impressive showing v Aberdeen.