Borna Barisic may have burned bridges with Rangers fans as Croatia manager speaks out
Rangers left-back Borna Barisic has been declared fit to represent Croatia, just a couple of days after being ruled out of the Old Firm clash with Celtic through injury.
Given Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalic described the injury on Tuesday [5 September] as “nothing serious” [Daily Record], it makes you wonder just how bad the injury must have been to keep Barisic out of such a huge game at the weekend.
Indeed, Michael Beale said ahead of the showdown with Celtic at Ibrox on Sunday [3 September] that Barisic “will be fine” for the match [Glasgow Live], only for the defender to be declared unfit shortly ahead of the game.
In the absence of Barisic, Beale had to use an uncomfortable looking Dujon Sterling at left-back.
The summer signing lasted a little over an hour on his full Scottish Premiership debut before being replaced by Ridvan Yilmaz, who was just as ineffective in a disappointing 1-0 home loss.
Barisic may well still be the best option available to Beale – when he declares himself fit, that is – yet many suspect his time has been up for a while now.
With younger options coming through, this might be the chance for under-fire Beale to make his mark and give others a run in the side.
After all, deciding not to play through the (minimal) pain barrier in an Old Firm match is pretty much a cardinal sin among the Gers’ faithful.
If Barisic does start upon Rangers’ return to action against St Johnstone on 16 September, then he quite simply needs to hit the ground running to show his commitment to the team that pays his wages.
In other Rangers news, Andy Halliday has outlined three failures Beale has made this season.