Rangers have no need for Jelavic to replace Boyd

You could well see a different Rangers this season

Okay, Rangers have finally got their man and once the work permit panel initially refuses the permit and then grants it on appeal (it’s a bit of a farce but rules is rules after all), Nikica Jelavic will find himself looking for his debut. You’d think that the home match versus St Johnstone will provide the perfect chance for the Croatian striker to kick-off his Gers career.

With that in mind, what sort of player is he likely to be?

He plays up front and Rangers lost their main goal threat in Kris Boyd so the natural reaction would be to consider him as a replacement for the now at Boro striker. The 3 goals against Celtic (three times the amount Boyd managed) has convinced some Rangers fans that Jelavic will be a straight replacement but we’re not so sure.

After all…3 goals against Celtic in Europe…..that’s only the same amount of goals that Gary Caldwell managed to put into the Celtic net in Europe!!

Don’t get us wrong, if the ball is in the box waiting to be swept away, there is a need for someone to be there to do the business but relying on one player isn’t healthy for a team. In a sense, Rangers have been building for this moment ever since Boyd was unable to find his goal-scoring form after his January injury.

Jelavic will get goals but you get the impression his job will be to ensure that more chances are created in the hope that his team-mates will be spreading the goal grabbing burden amongst them. For all that Boyd got a lot of vital goals, notably early strikes at Ibrox, completely dismantling the opposition’s tactical plan within 5 minutes; it was other players that kept Rangers on a steady path.

It’s been well noted that Kenny Miller had his most consistent season in professional football and the goals of Steven Whittaker from the full-back position had a large impact on the stress-free glide to the SPL title.

The comparisons between Jelavic and Dado Prso are natural due to their nationality but it may be the new striker has a bit more in common with the pony-tailed striker in workrate and maintaining possession than he does with Boyd.

With Celtic’s performance against Utrecht in mind, it looks as though both big teams in Glasgow will be altered in style of play and mindset from last season.

Rangers will still be resolute at the back but from the middle forward, there is likely to be a change in style. There are big hopes being placed on Vladimir Weiss and Steven Davis could well feature more in the middle so it’ll be interesting to see how (or even if) the Rangers shape alters with their new attacking options.

Yeah, the window is still open, there could be other movements surrounding Rangers before it closes but we can’t help but try to second guess how this Rangers team will line up and play.

The first 11 is still strong enough to do the business and on that basis, you would state that Rangers are still SPL favourites….but it could be a long season to contend with.

How do you think Jelavic will do?

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