Alfredo Morelos to miss Rangers vs Celtic Old Firm match after Columbia recall
Morelos has been recalled for Columbia's World Cup qualifiers; the striker will miss the Old Firm clash on February 2, live on Sky Sports; he has scored six goals since Giovanni van Bronckhorst took charge; Rangers are four points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership
Thursday 20 January 2022 17:16, UK
Alfredo Morelos is set to miss Rangers' Old Firm game against Celtic next month after being recalled to the Colombia squad for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers.
The fixture at Parkhead on February 2, live on Sky Sports, clashes with Colombia's matches against Peru on January 28 and Argentina on February 1.
It comes after the original tie - which was due to take place on January 2 - was postponed for an earlier winter break following restrictions on fans attending matches.
Morelos, 25, will also miss Rangers' match against Ross County - live on Sky Sports.
His selection comes following Atalanta forward Duvan Zapata's injury that will rule him out for several weeks.
Tottenham's Davinson Sanchez, Stiven Alzate of Brighton plus Everton's Yerry Mina have also been selected for the double-header.
Van Bronckhorst: Losing Morelos isn't ideal
Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst may also be without Joe Aribo - who is with Nigeria at the Africa Cup of Nations - when Rangers visit Celtic and it is something he accepts he will need to deal with on a regular basis.
"Obviously you want to have a full squad for every game and for this one we'll miss Aribo and Morelos," he said.
"That's not what you want, but it's the way it is. If you have international games during the league it always gives you a difficult situation, not only for me and that club but for the player as well.
"They're stuck in between playing for their country and for their club. I know what the club means to Joe and Alfredo but, as an international player, I also know how important it is to be successful for your national team. It's a battle you can't win as a player."
Can Rangers cope without Morelos?
On current form, the striker's absence will be a big blow. He was recently named Scottish Premiership player of the month for December after scoring four goals for the league leaders.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst praised Morelos' attitude since the Rangers boss took over at Ibrox, describing him as "a positive factor for the team."
His influence on the pitch is clear to see but Rangers will take confidence from this season's opening Old Firm encounter.
The Scottish Premiership champions were without captain James Tavernier, Allan McGregor, Jon McLaughlin, Calvin Bassey, Scott Wright, Ryan Kent and manager at the time, Steven Gerrard for the match in August and won 1-0.
While February's clash will be a different proposition at Parkhead, Fashion Sakala and Cedric Itten will hope they are handed the challenge of leading the line against Celtic.
Van Bronckhorst recalled Itten from his loan at German club Greuther Furth, where he scored two goals in 12 games for the newly promoted Bundesliga side.
The Switzerland international arrived at Ibrox from St Gallen in 2020 and scored some key goals as Rangers won their 55th top-flight title last season.
Moore: Rangers title bid strengthened by Van Bronckhorst
Former Rangers defender Craig Moore believes the champions' hopes of retaining the Scottish Premiership title have improved following van Bronckhorst's arrival at Ibrox.
The Dutchman replaced Steven Gerrard in November and is yet to lose in the league whilst leading the club into the Europa League knockout stages.
"I think sometimes in football timing just works, Steven Gerrard got that opportunity to go down south and Rangers now have the opportunity and they've brought in Giovanni van Bronckhorst," he told Sky Sports News.
"He knows the football club, but more importantly has a decent level of experience with success at Feyenoord as well.
"The changes he's made to the team I think have been really clear. There's a better balance, you won't see both full-backs bombing on at the same time."
