Kevin Ciubotaru pushing for Rangers senior place after silky skills caught on camera
With Borna Barisic at the World Cup with Croatia and Ridvan Yilmaz struggling with injury, Rangers could have a left-back issue when football resumes.
But there is one Light Blues man who is keen to prove that he can fill the void left by the aforementioned duo and he used the Gers’ Lowland League clash with Bo’ness United to stake his claim.
Kevin Ciubotaru may not have got his name on the scoresheet in the 4-0 win but he did provide one moment of absolute genius to wow the crowd in attendance.
As shared by Kinetic Academy on Twitter, the foundation Ciubotaru played for before signings for Rangers, the 18-year-old pulled out his silky skills in a tight area to weave past three opposition defenders.
The jaw-dropping skills should at the very least alert Michael Beale to the Romanian’s ability and, more importantly, availability with Barisic likely to still be in Qatar by the time the Scottish season resumes.
Yilmaz and the Croatian will still be the main choices for Beale, as they were for Giovanni van Bronckhorst before him, but this kind of talent can not go unnoticed.
There won’t be such a worry about the left-back spot in the January transfer window with Ciubotaru in form like this which will allow the new boss to splash the cash elsewhere.
He might not be the only B team player to be knocking on the first-team door either with David McCallum’s side five points clear at the top of the Lowland League, ahead of Old Firm rivals Celtic.
East Kilbride await the B team on Tuesday (6 December) with the next instalment of the Mini Old Firm set for 30 December in what could be a critical game in the race for the fifth division title.
In other Rangers news, it’s now time for the club to move on from this dynamic duo as “unattainable” offers continue to cause problems.