Only one Rangers player ruled out of clash v Standard Liege – confirmed

Wed 21 October 2020 18:10, UK

Steven Gerrard has confirmed that Nikola Katic will be the only absentee when his Rangers side take on Standard Liege on Thursday.

Katic continues his recovery from a cruciate ligament rupture that occurred earlier this year and it is unknown when he will return.

But, in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday, Gerrard said that Kemar Roofe and Joe Aribo are both available for the Europa League clash against Liege, but added that they need to be brought “up to speed”.

🎙️ SG: The squad is in a really good place at the moment. We still need to get Roofe and Aribo up to full speed. Everyone is fit and available and is only Katic not with us at the moment. I am excited to work with a full group of players.
— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) October 21, 2020

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Aribo made his return from injury in the final stages of the Gers’ 2-0 win over Celtic on Saturday and provides another option in midfield should Gerrard decide to start him on Thursday.

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Roofe is close to returning after missing his side’s last six games with an injury he sustained in the first half against Lincoln Red Imps in Europa League qualifying.

Gerrard now has basically a full squad available to him, which will serve him well as he negotiates the hectic schedule that awaits his side.

The Light Blues face eight games in just over a month from Thursday and having a large portion of the squad available will give the Rangers boss plenty of room to rotate and protect his players in what could be a brutal few weeks.

In those eight games, the Gers will face the three teams in their Europa League group at least once and will try to maintain their unbeaten record in the Scottish Premiership. Every game for Rangers is important at this stage of the season and having a large squad with strength and depth is key for maintaining form in both competitions.

Rangers haven’t suffered too much with their absent players this term as they are still yet to lose a game in all competitions but the true test will begin on Thursday as Rangers go again in search of European success. But their priority must surely be on regaining the Scottish title from Celtic. The league looks to define the Gers’ season this term and Rangers won’t want to drop off in the league due to European commitments.

In other Rangers news, Roofe has explained the similarities between Gerrard and Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa.