Steven Davis must wield brutal Rangers axe on Cyriel Dessers and Sam Lammers for crucial St Mirren clash
Steven Davis could be set to make several changes to his Rangers side for their crunch SPFL clash with St Mirren on Sunday and two key changes could see both Cyriel Dessers and Sam Lammers both axed.
The legendary Ibrox midfielder oversaw the 2-1 defeat to Aris Limassol in Cyprus on Thursday in his first game as interim boss since Michael Beale’s sacking (1 October), with very limited options to choose from due to an ongoing injury crisis at the club.
In a game where the Light Blues players were expected to bounce back from the disappointing Aberdeen defeat that ultimately led to Beale’s sacking, they failed miserably as Aris outthought and outplayed them in another disastrous showing in Cyprus.
Daily Record journalist David McCarthy, writing on page 49 of the Daily Record’s print edition on Friday (6 October) shared that Davis would have been sick to his stomach at the performance of the Rangers players against Aris, on a night when they badly needed a response.
Ahead of a crucial crunch clash at high-flying St Mirren, Davis will be expected to ring the changes again in what is expected to be his final game as boss, with an appointment on a new manager expected during the upcoming international break.
And two key changes the interim boss must make on Sunday should be on both Dessers and Lammers who have both flattered to deceive ever since joining over the summer.
Both players joined Rangers for a combined fee of around £6m in the summer but have really struggled to hit the ground running, and it seems the Ibrox faithful have already had enough.
Steven Clifford, speaking on Rangers Review (3 October, 8m:54sec) shared that the way that the crowd are with the summer signing, Davis should not play him against St Mirren and it would take a “helluva turnaround” should Dessers recover from such a treatment.
The Nigerian striker has drawn frank criticism from fans and pundits for his performances since his move from Italian outfit Cremonese and has been used as a poster boy for the Light Blues’ terrible summer transfer window, which ultimately cost Michael Beale his job.
It’s certainly never nice when fans single out a player individually and ridicule him with boos and unwanted and unnecessary criticism and that’s the unfortunate treatment Dessers is receiving right now which isn’t right.
Not only him, but Lammers too.
The Scottish Daily Mail on 6 October (page 79), gave Lammers a rating of 3.5/10 with journalist Calum McClurkin saying: “Supposed to be the link-up man in attack but gave the ball away repeatedly. No surprise he was hooked.”
No Rangers player was rated lower than Lammers against Aris and it may be sensible for Davis to take both players out of the firing line right now, with the international potentially giving them some breathing space, with fans already losing patience.
While the St Mirren encounter is a must-win game for Davis and Rangers, it’s also a chance to see what others can do. But it’s clear Lammers and Dessers aren’t in the right frame of mind to perform at 100% right now.
In other Rangers news, Bisgrove may have to let the cash fly for one exciting trophy-winning managerial candidate who looks a certainty to succeed at Ibrox.