Rangers handed major blow ahead of cup quarter-final v St Mirren
Steven Gerrard delivered a major fitness blow during his pre-match press conference, with Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack still sidelined.
Speaking ahead of the St. Mirren tie on Wednesday night, Gerrard confirmed that Jack is still working his way back to full fitness, claiming the player is ‘moving along’.
It appears the game at St Mirren Park has come too soon for Jack, who has been out of the side since suffering an injury against Aberdeen in November.
Jack has endured something of a stop-start season so far, with the midfielder previously troubled by a calf injury back in September.
Gerrard was giving nothing away about a potential return date for Jack, who will provide the Gers with a timely boost when he does next feature for the club.
A sign of Rangers’ strength in depth
Rangers’ midfield has been one of their strongest assets in recent weeks.
While the likes of Ryan Kent and Kemar Roofe may steal the headlines in the final third, the form of Gerrard’s midfield three has been crucial to their success.
Prior to his injury, Jack was one of Rangers’ top performers this season, with an average WhoScored match rating of 7.01.
Of all the club’s midfielders, only Joe Aribo has performed higher (7.33), despite the fact Jack has been out of the side for over three weeks.
Jack’s return could also take some of the pressure off Steven Davis, who has shown his class this season. However, turning 36 in January, he is not somebody that Gerrard wants to be relying on long term.
Aribo, Davis and Glen Kamara have all impressed individually in recent weeks and the ability to add Jack back into that mix in the coming weeks highlights the quality in depth that Gerrard has at his disposal.
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