Youssef Chermiti facing month-long absence in significant blow to Rangers
Rangers beat Hibs 2-0 in the Premier Sports Cup semi-finals at Ibrox.
Nico Raskin and Bojan Miovski’s goals for Rangers helped alleviate the pressure on Russell Martin as Andrew Cavenagh watched on.
Miovski has been preferred up front over Youssef Chermiti, who joined for £10m from Everton.
Kevin Thelwell pushed hard to sign Chermiti, with doubts being raised over the fee.
Youssef Chermiti could miss one month if he switches his nationality
Chermiti remains on the bench despite the money Rangers have paid for him, and he could miss out on further action at Ibrox if he decides to play for Tunisia.
Chermiti was born in Portugal to a Tunisian father and a Bissau-Guinean mother and decided to play for the country that he grew up in at youth level.
Chermiti has made two appearances for Portugal’s U21 team this year, scoring a goal against the Faroe Islands.
In an article by the Daily Record, Tunisian FA sports director Zied Jaziri has spoken about Chermiti making a potential switch.
He said: “At the moment, we have found it difficult to get Youssef Chermiti to commit his international future to Tunisia.
“We will continue to hold talks with him and hope he eventually decides on our exciting project.
“Certain players have told us they are waiting for a minimal opportunity, even a one per cent chance, to join European squads.”
Should he make the change, he would then be unavailable over the Christmas period as Tunisia have qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
Their campaign starts on 23 December vs Uganda, with the final taking place on 18 January in Rabat.
As a result, with the pre-tournament camp and the possibility Tunisia could go far, Chermiti would miss:
- Hearts (a) – 20 December
- Motherwell (h) – 27 December
- St Mirren (h) – 30 December
- Celtic (a) – 3 January
- Aberdeen (a) – 10 January
Whilst these dates are subject to change, it would still leave Rangers without a striker for one of the busiest periods of the year.
Russell Martin should start Youssef Chermiti vs Genk
Chermiti needs game time to prove everyone doubting him wrong, and Thursday’s Europa League opener could be when he makes his full debut.
Russell Martin’s reluctance to play two strikers despite it making sense has left Chermiti having to fight for his place from the bench.
A start against Genk could give Light Blues a chance to see how he performs over 90 minutes.
Genk are yet to keep a clean sheet this season in all competitions, and Chermiti could gain confidence playing against a defence that seems to lack any.
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