22-year-old Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos has been on top form for Steven Gerrard’s men this season. The Colombian has netted 28 times in all competitions, and has certainly stepped up at Ibrox after an underwhelming debut season in Glasgow.
As you can imagine, his goalscoring stats have not gone unnoticed, with links of a big move only getting stronger as the days go on. Morelos has said on numerous accounts that he may move on this summer. Gerrard has said that he could understand his decision, but the question is should Alfredo leave Rangers in the summer, and what would it mean for his career?
Should Clubs Be Looking at Alfredo Morelos?
Who is Alfredo Morelos?
Alfredo José Morelos Aviléz’s career began with Independiente Medellín in his native Colombia, the club which he had played for since 2011. After earning a call-up to the senior team, Morelos’ senior debut came in September 2014. After impressing for Medellín as a young talent, Finnish big dogs HJK Helsinki signed him on loan with an option to buy in 2016.
The Colombian made an immediate impact in Finland, scoring on his debut. As the goals kept coming in, HJK bought the striker on a permanent basis. Ultimately, Morelos ended the 2016 season on 31 goals and was named as the league’s best striker of the year. Over the course of his career, Morelos has been known as ‘El Buffalo’, a nickname familiarly used today.
After an incredible spell in Scandinavia, Rangers made their interest clear, buying Morelos in June 2017 for a reported fee of £1 million. However, the Colombian did not endure a season that Gers fans had hoped for. Despite finishing as the SPFL’s second highest scorer of the 2017/18, his performances were simply not good enough. He missed far too many chances, and his touch and play were not up to the standard of his Rangers teammates.
However, after the appointment of Steven Gerrard, Morelos has completely turned his Rangers career around in his second season. ‘El Buffalo’ has been a consistent goalscorer in a strong Rangers team. It seems that all Morelos needed was time to mature into the striker he is at the moment. His touch, passing and dribbling have heavily improved and he is becoming a nightmare for defenders to handle. Morelos’ form earned him a debut for the Colombian national team back in September of last year, in a 2-1 victory against Venezuela.
Where Does the Future Lie for Morelos?
Alfredo Morelos is undoubtedly a fan favourite at Ibrox, and they will be desperate for the 22-year-old to remain in Glasgow. The striker is one of the most passionate players on the pitch and adores the fans. It appears however that he feels differently about his future.
In an interview with a Colombian radio station recently, Morelos said: “There are many teams interested in me. Most likely my transfer will be this summer. I know my goalscoring record has been noticed by European clubs. Of course, I would like to play in the Premier League.”
Can you blame him? The Premier League is a dream destination for players across the world. Morelos could be the type of player some clubs in England’s top flight could do with too. Likely a smaller club, but with the money teams are able to spend Premier League and even Championship clubs could be convinced to spend big for ‘El Buffalo’.
As much as a departure would be heartbreaking for the Teddy Bears, a big money sale would be a blessing in disguise for Rangers. It’s hard to tell which level of club would be willing to recruit Morelos and for how much money? One thing for certain is that money isn’t the same for Scottish teams, including for the ‘Old Firm’ clubs.
How much the Colombian would go for is something too early to call. Some fans at the moment are going as far as £15-20 million. A price like this would really help Rangers for the future, and could also encourage more clubs to look at Rangers for new signings. If Morelos is able to bolster this high goal tally, who knows how much he could be worth?
Copa America Call-Up Imminent?
The final piece to mention is that Morelos is in contention for a place in Colombia’s Copa America squad. The Copa America is the competition that sees countries from across the American continent take on each other. It is a very prestigious competition, with the 2019 edition of the tournament taking place in Brazil.
With Colombia having just two games scheduled between now and the Copa America, manager Carlos Queiroz has been travelling across Europe to watch some of his players ahead of this summer’s competition. He has already watched Bayern Munich’s James Rodriguez and Villarreal’s Carlos Bacca. Queiroz has stated that he also intends on watching Morelos.
“It’s important that I watch and speak to my European-based players and I intend to do that. There are others I want to see too like David Ospina from Napoli, Radamel Falcao at Monaco and Alfredo Morelos at Rangers.”
A place in the squad could be a monumental moment in Morelos’ career and could further the attention from big clubs. From now until the end of the season, Morelos’ intention will be to keep this unreal form alive, to help gain a place in the Colombia squad and potentially win some silverware with Rangers.
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