Rangers face ‘nightmare’ this week as trio could miss Viaplay Cup final v Celtic
Michael Beale is facing an injury “nightmare” ahead of next Sunday’s Viaplay Cup final against Celtic with three key Rangers players struggling with fitness, according to Scottish Mail on Sunday (19 February, page 112).
The Bears extended their unbeaten run to 14 matches under Beale with a 3-0 win against Livingston on Saturday (18 February) but they were without Malik Tillman, Ryan Jack and John Lundstram in West Lothian.
Glen Kamara, Todd Cantwell and Nicolas Raskin started against Livi and Beale admitted that he could be forced to pick the same players for the massive clash against Celtic.
Huge blow
Tillman, who joined from Bayern Munich on loan this summer, has been in cracking form under Beale. He has picked up a hamstring problem.
Lundstram, the midfield maestro, is out with an ankle injury while Lundstram is facing calf problems. Likewise, Scott Arfield is also absent, and it could be a tough-and-go situation for these players to get fit ahead of the big game.
The likes of Raskin and Cantwell are superb players and have done well so far, but in Old Firm clash, you need experienced players as well. That’s why losing both Jack and Lundstram will be a massive blow for the club.
The coming next few days will be very crucial, and Beale will hope that they will return to training towards the end of the week so that he can at least use them from the bench.
It was good to see that James Tavernier is back among goals again. He netted the 50th penalty of his career against Livingston in the first half, although it looked like a soft decision.
In other Rangers news, the club are in line for a multi-million windfall from the Premier League after a £10m Auchenhowie milestone was reached.