Anthony Onifade

Fri 15 September 2023 20:40, UK

Rangers midfielder Todd Cantwell is now expected to be out of action for the rest of this month which now increases the pressure on summer signing Sam Lammers to deliver.

Michael Beale confirmed that Cantwell will miss up to four Rangers matches, making the manager’s job even tougher heading into a high-pressure week for him and his stars after some disappointing results.

Taking to Instagram (15 September), the midfielder promised to be back on the pitch “as soon as [he] can”, but hinted that the injury is worse than expected.

Cantwell said: “Thank you for all the continued support and messages. I’ll be back as soon as I can, it’s not so straightforward but for now I’ll be with you all as a fan.”

Cantwell has been a rare standout for Beale’s side so far this season, and the news of his prolonged absence could have the boss feeling even more nervous regarding his job security at Ibrox.

A knock picked up in the Old Firm loss has forced the Englishman to the sidelines for multiple weeks as the Gers enter a critical period of the season with the whole club facing much scrutiny.

Cantwell has proven a crucial player since he joined the club in January, so far scoring six goals and registering six assists from 28 games in Glasgow, becoming the pivotal link between midfield and attack in Beale’s 4-3-2-1 or 4-3-3 system.

After this huge and worrying development, that responsibility will now rest on another player’s shoulders and that man is Lammers who has left plenty of room for Rangers fans to doubt whether he’ll actually be a success at Ibrox already.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT on 7 September, former Eurosport journalist Dean Jones said Lammers has not been good enough so far at Rangers, and his loss of confidence is becoming concerning as time drags on.

Jones has claimed the striker’s body language is becoming a concern, as he is desperate to give the Ibrox crowd the return they are expecting of him, which can impact badly on his performances.

Obviously, one goal from nine matches isn’t a good enough return.

“But you can start to see the anguish in his face now when the chances are passing him by, and that’s a little bit concerning because you really don’t want your players in the frontline losing confidence that easily.

“I think part of the reason is that he is just desperate to give these Rangers fans what they want and get them to where they want to be. It’s really, really tough.”

The expectation on Lammers’ shoulders have certainly been unfair given he’s only just recently joined and needs time to bed in but when you’re joining a club as big as Rangers, those lofty expectations to deliver quickly is part and parcel of the job and the former Sampdoria forward has so far struggled.

The Dutchman has only managed to find the net once in four appearances in the Scottish Premiership and was dropped from the starting XI for the first Old Firm derby of the season as he has struggled to hit the ground running in Glasgow.

In the 240 minutes that he has played since making the move to Scotland, he has only created one chance for his teammates and registered 1.58 expected goals, with his finishing rate a genuine concern in the early stages of the season [Fotmob].

Lammers has only managed to have three shots on target this season, meaning an incredibly poor 38 per cent of his attempts trouble the goalkeeper. He’s also already missed two big chances in the domestic league season when partnered with Cyriel Dessers (four) and Danilo (2) highlighting Rangers’ worrying troubles in converting chances so far this campaign.

Yes, Lammers may need time to acclimatise himself but that room and time to get used to his new surroundings has just gotten smaller after this damaging new Cantwell development.

Just as the pressure is intensifying at Ibrox and for Beale, Lammers will also be feeling just as much heat with Cantwell’s talented and influential shoes desperately needing to be filled for the next few weeks.

In other Rangers news, Beale has confirmed talks with the Gers board after the tough start to the season.