Rangers have to find Cyriel Dessers replacement after what he did at Murrayfield

Cyriel Dessers playing for 75 minutes in Rangers' friendly defeat Manchester United shows how much Philippe Clement needs a new striker.

The Nigerian international started up front for the Light Blues' fourth pre-season match, but couldn't find the net as Clement's side suffered a 2-0 loss to the Red Devils at Murrayfield.

Replaced by Danilo with 15 minutes to go along with nine other substitutes, Dessers had two efforts on goal blocked by Leny Yoro either side of forcing Andre Onana into an easy save with a shot on the turn.

Other than that though, the Gers' number nine failed to really test a makeshift United defence, and with the new campaign just weeks away from starting, it looks as if he'll remain Clement's first choice.

Rangers need reinforcements up front after Cyriel Dessers display

It's difficult to read too much into pre-season friendly displays – and unwise to make definitive statements from them – but the Gers' attacking options at Murrayfield laid the club's lack of depth bare.

Danilo's return from a potentially career-threatening injury is undoubtedly a positive sign, but the club simply cannot afford to go into the new campaign with just the Brazilian and Dessers to choose from.

Oscar Cortes started out wide as he continues his own comeback from injury, but was withdrawn for Rabbi Matondo at half-time with Clement keen to manage minutes in pre-season.

If the Belgian had alternative striking options on the bench, he could have introduced someone in place of Dessers at that point too, to chase the game at 1-0 down and allow for more rotation in the squad.

However, despite reports linking Dessers himself with an Ibrox exit [Chris Jack, 11 July], there's still been no headline signing, casting doubt over whether Clement's squad rebuild is really going as planned.

In other Rangers news, Derek Ferguson had his say on Todd Cantwell’s future at Ibrox.

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