Injury expert discusses surgery as updates on Rangers midfielder Nicolas Raskin
We are delighted to welcome trauma expert Dr.
Rajpal Brar as our exclusive columnist.
According to doctor Rajpal Brar, each week he will give the Rangers’ injury situation.
Rangers midfielder Nicolas Raskin may even have to have surgery on his ankle in case it becomes unstable determined.
If that’s the case, he could be out of action for three months, which would be a big blow for Philippe Clément, the injury expert said.
The Belgian midfielder went down during the 2-1 win over Hearts at the weekend and had to be stretchered off.
Discussing his situation exclusively with Ibrox News, Brar, a physiotherapist and sports scientist, said: “I can’t find any clear pictures of the injury, But the worst case scenario is a sprain.
usually a high ankle sprain, in which case you will be out a minimum of three to four weeks.
If the ankle is unstable and requires surgery, that balloons to over three months out.
“Right now, all Clement is saying is that he hopes for it to be short term and we’ll probably know more in the coming days.“
Raskin moved to Ibrox on transfer deadline day in the January transfer window from Standard Liege.
The midfielder was linked to Rangers for a while and the move finally materialised with him adapting well to life in Scotland.
Missing him for three months may throw a spanner in the works to Clement’s plans, given that Raskin has been a regular in his team thus far.
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Cyriel Dessers dropped in Rangers predicted XI vs Dundee
The possible line up that Philippe Clement could select on Wednesday night.
Glasgow Rangers return to action in the Scottish Premiership tomorrow night as they travel away from Ibrox to take on Dundee under the lights.
The Light Blues are five points off the top of the table and could swing that to two if results go their way on Wednesday as they look to continue their strong start to life under their new manager.
Philippe Clement came in to replace English head coach Michael Beale and is unbeaten in his first three competitive outings in charge of the club.
A 4-0 demolition of Hibernian came in his first match in the dugout before a hard-fought 0-0 draw away at Sparta Prague in Europa League action followed that.
His most recent game in charge was a dramatic 2-1 victory over Hearts at Ibrox as late goals from James Tavernier and Danilo in stoppage time secured all three points after an early goal from Lawrence Shankland provided the away side with a shock lead.
It now remains to be seen what changes the Belgian boss will decide to make from the starting XI that lined up on Sunday, although there could be an enforced alteration in midfield.
With that being said, here is our look at what the XI could look like tomorrow evening with as many as three changes that could be made…
1GK – Jack Butland
The former England international has started every league game for the Gers since his free transfer from Crystal Palace and is the firm number one, with six clean sheets in ten starts.
He has saved 74% of the efforts on his goal and has been a reliable presence between the sticks for both Beale and Clement so far this season.
2RB – James Tavernier (C)
The captain did miss from the penalty spot against Hearts but made up for it with an assist for Danilo’s winning header after slotting from 12 yards at the second attempt to make it 1-1 before that.
His attacking contributions from that position of the pitch make him a valuable player to have in the team and that is why the experience whiz should retain his place.
3CB – Connor Goldson
Standing at 6 foot 3, the central defender is a towering presence at the back for the Light Blues and should maintain his position in the side after a solid display last time out.
4CB – Ben Davies
The English dud allowed Lawrence Shankland to pull away from him and pin Ridvan Yilmaz at the back post for Hearts’ opening goal on Sunday, which could have been a costly mistake if not for the goals from Danilo and Tavernier.
Souttar has started six league games this term and caught the eye against Sparta Prague last week as he won five of his seven duels to help his side to a clean sheet, and the colossus could have replaced Davies at the back.
However, the Scotland international has been ruled out of being available for selection due to a muscle injury. This means that there are no senior centre-back options to come in for the ex-Liverpool man.
5LB – Ridvan Yilmaz
Borna Barisic is expected to be back this week but there is no need to rush him back from injury and the Turkey international could, therefore, keep his place in the team
He could be partially blamed for Shankland’s goal on Sunday but, as mentioned above, it was a result of a structural mistake as the 6 foot 1 striker should not have been allowed to pin him at the back post.
6CM – Ryan Jack
Ryan Jack could come in as the first of the three changes in place of central midfielder John Lundstram, who struggled at times against Hearts.
The former Sheffield United man lined up in midfield and completed 95 of his 109 attempted passes at the weekend but his play out of possession was not as impressive.
He lost six of his seven ground duels and bringing Jack in for this game could provide him with a welcome rest after a troubled afternoon on Sunday.
7CM – Jose Cifuentes
Nicolas Raskin was stretchered off against Hearts and it remains to be seen when he will be able to make a return to action on the pitch for the Light Blues.
This unfortunate blow could, however, open the door for Cifuentes to make his debut under Clement as the Ecuador international has not played competitive minutes for Rangers since Michael Beale was relieved of his duties.
The former LAFC star has a clean slate and could look to revive his MLS form from 2022, when he scored seven goals and provided six assists in 29 starts.
8RW – Sam Lammers
On the right of the attack, the Dutch summer signing from Atalanta could keep his place without any significant competition from other players within the squad.
Lammers has only scored one goal in ten Premiership matches for the Light Blues but the senior alternative is Scott Wright, who has zero goals and zero assists in four league outings.
9AM – Todd Cantwell
The Brighton & Hove Albion loanee produced an eye-catching five key passes against Hearts and should keep his place on the left side of the attack.
He has scored five goals in five Premiership starts throughout the 2023/24 campaign and, therefore, has the quality to pop up with a match-winning moment.
11ST – Danilo
The third and final change to the starting XI could be to bring Danilo in for Cyriel Dessers to provide Rangers with a better option through the middle of the pitch.
Since arriving from Cremonese during the summer transfer window, the Nigeria international has scored two goals in eight league starts and lost a whopping 71% of his duels.
Whereas, the Brazilian dynamo, who was dubbed an “amazing instinctive finisher” by analyst and Eredivisie expert Melvin Dupper, has struck three times and lost 59% of his duels in just two league starts for the Gers.
Therefore, Clement could finally unleash Danilo from the start by ditching Dessers as his statistics suggest that he would be a better outlet and scoring option.
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