Amid speculations over Steven Gerrard’s future as the Ibrox chief, Rangers are all set for Wednesday night to lock horns with struggling Hamilton Academical. They have little hope of conquering a domestic crown this season having been knocked out by Hearts from the Scottish Cup quarterfinals. However, the gaffer should be determined to turn things around and keep pace with Celtic to stay relevant in the Premiership battle.
The Accies are second-last in the league tally and therefore, in desperate need of grabbing a few points to avoid a demotion. But they have been humbled by the Bears in the recent past and must punch above the weight to cause an upset despite Rangers’ dreadful domestic run.
Rangers Team News Versus Hamilton Academical
The Gers will be without a couple of key personnel for the midweek tie. A bruised heel would keep Ryan Jack in the sidelines whereas veteran Scott Arfield remains unavailable following a muscle strain suffered against the Jambos. Filip Helander [foot] and Matt Polster [knock], though back in the team training, are unlikely to be involved in the first-team action immediately. Alfredo Morelos was not involved this weekend due to internal disciplinary reasons but is now back in contention as revealed by the iconic Liverpudlian.
Rangers Formation vs Hamilton Academical
Although a 4-3-3 has been questioned of late, Gerrard is expected to stick to his plan and field the Light Blues in a similar setup for this midweek fixture.
Predicted 4-3-3 Rangers Lineup To Face Hamilton Academical
Defence
Allan McGregor has been majestic all season but must take the blame to a certain extent for conceding bizarrely against Hearts. Yet he should keep his place between the sticks as the Gers ‘number 1’.
James Tavernier must improve his defensive game but, at the same time, should offer more in the attacking third with his marauding runs, crosses, cut insides and finishing attributes. Connor Goldson, alongside George Edmundson, exhibited their excellence in the heart of the backline against Braga.
Borna Barisic, too, has been impressive with his set-pieces, crosses and link-up play with Ryan Kent down the left flank and the entire ‘back four’, therefore, should remain unaltered despite a few erroneous outings.
Midfield
Injuries to Ryan Jack and Scott Arfield would force Gerrard to make changes in the middle of the park. Steven Davis must operate from a deep-lying role, whereas Glen Kamara might be recalled into action having lost his place recently following an array of underwhelming performances. Joe Aribo should return to his midfield slot despite impressing as a wide attacker on quite a few occasions.
Attack
Ryan Kent remains irreplaceable at this moment and should keep on causing menace with his pace, power and directness. In-form Ianis Hagi should get the nod down the right-hand flank, but the manager must prefer Florian Kamberi from the start as the on-loan Hibernian ‘number 9’ has already proved a point as an impact substitute. Morelos, Greg Stewart and Jermain Defoe might be utilised at some stage from the bench depending upon the status of the match.
