There are plenty of reasons why Rangers have endured a miserable season so far.
Most would blame under-fire manager Russell Martin, who has won just five of 15 matches in charge across all competitions to date, while others cite poor squad building and underwhelming recruitment.
It may not be the primary reason, but the departure of Václav Černý has to be a key factor.
The Czechia international spent last season on loan in Glasgow from Wolfsburg, joining Beşiktaş on a permanent deal this summer instead of returning, but he made quite the impression during his year in Govan.
Černý scored 18 goals in 52 appearances for Rangers, of which six came in the Europa League, a key figure as the Light Blues reached the quarter-finals, on target against Steaua Bucharest, Nice and Royale Union Saint-Gilloise before netting twice during the famous 3-1 victory over Fenerbahçe in İstanbul.
Thus, he was always going to be a near-impossible figure to replace, but has Martin unearthed the new Černý, a man who will be key to Rangers’ hopes in this season’s Europa League?
Oliver Antman's impact at Rangers
Ahead of Thursday night’s clash with Sturm Graz at Liebenauer Stadium, Oliver Antman is expected to start on the right-wing, chosen over Mikey Moore.
The Finnish international was introduced at half-time of last Thursday’s 1-0 defeat to Genk, following Mohamed Diomandé’s red card, before starting Sunday’s hard-fought, last gasp 2-1 victory over Livingston, assisting James Tavernier’s opener at Almondvale.
The Finnish international was an exciting signing right from the off, having registered six goals and 16 assists for Go Ahead Eagles last season, helping them win the KNVB Beker for the very first time, the Eredivisie club’s first major silverware since 1933.
Less than 24 hours after arriving in Glasgow for around £3.5m, he was the star of the show as Rangers demolished Viktoria Plzeň 3-0 in a Champions League qualifier as the team put in, by some distance, their best performance under Martin.
However, soon after, he lost his place in the starting lineup to Spurs loanee Moore, but is seemingly the first choice once again.
However, is the winger on the opposite side even more exciting?
Rangers' new Václav Černý
In a season of few positives for Rangers, the form of Djeidi Gassama is certainly something worth being excited about.
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If Černý’s calling card last season was scoring goals in Europe, well the 22-year-old certainly took up that mantle from day one.
During the summer, after arriving from Sheffield Wednesday for a reported fee of £2.2m, the Frenchman scored four times in Rangers’ first three Champions League qualifiers, on target home and away as they dumped out Panathinaikos, before a double to down Viktoria Plzeň at Ibrox, the second of which completed a free-flowing team move, set up by Antman.
Speaking on BBC Sportscene after full time, former Rangers midfielder Andy Halliday labelled Gassama an “electric winger”, adding that he is “direct, quick and a constant threat, [causing] defenders a lot of problems”, while manager Martin praised his “intensity” and goal threat, noting that is something the pair had worked on in training.
So, let’s outline Gassama’s statistics so far this season.
Goals
4
1st
Assists
1
4th
Minutes
1,059
3rd
Shots
15
1st
Shots on target
5
1st
Shot-creating actions
4
1st
Progressive carries
8
1st
Successful take-ons
9
1st
Average Sofascore rating
6.87
6th
As the table documents, despite having not scored since Champions League qualifying in August, Gassama has been key to Rangers as an attacking unit, ranked first for goals, shots and shots on target as well as chances created and dribbling metrics.
The Frenchman has already shown that he is capable of linking up with Antman while, alongside Bojan Miovski, they should form a frightening front three at both domestic and Europa League level, looking to fire the Gers to victory in Austria.
