Top 4 strikers whom Rangers FC should target

Ever since Rangers FC's liquidation back at the end of the 2011/12 season, Scottish football has seen Celtic FC run riot all over oppositions having won 7 of the past Scottish Premiership Championships unanswered.

Aberdeen led by now gone Ireland striker Adam Rooney and manager Derek McInnes always challenged Celtic early on in every season but never had the depth, capacity nor talent to mount a sustainable title challenge.

Rangers, however, are back with a point to prove. The 2016/17 season saw them get promoted to Scottish first division but saw them fall 36 points behind league leaders Celtic FC, led by former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers.

In the 2017/18 Rangers F.C appointed former Santos Laguna manager Pedro Caxinha and backed him up heavily in the transfer market in an effort to mount a title challenge against Brendan Rodgers' record-breaking club.

This, however, ended up being a total disappointment; with Pedro Caxinha being relieved of his duties by October 26. Fast forward to today with Steven Gerrard in the dugout and Ibrox Stadium is singing and shouting louder than they ever have in years.

Having been heavily funded, this summer saw Rangers FC bring in a total of 15 players towards Ibrox Stadium. They are back in European football still in contention of qualifying for the knockout stages, with everything to play for in their visit to Austria against Rapid Wein, and are one point behind league leaders Kilmarnock with a game in hand.

A lot of positions, however, look like they need improvement with the striking position in most dire. Kyle Lafferty has looked shaky in his return to Ibrox and has not helped take the workload off Alfredo Morelos. Here I look at 4 strikers Steven Gerrard and the Rangers administration should take a look at.

#1 Dominic Solanke, Liverpool

Things have not gone according to plan for the former 6'2 Chelsea striker Dominic Solanke since his move to Anfield. Since his move away from Stamford Bridge, he has encountered the same problem he faced at Chelsea a lack of playing time.

In Liverpool, Solanke finds himself well beneath the pecking order with Roberto Firmino, Daniel Sturridge and Divock Origi all ahead of him. Out on the wings, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah have made the positions their own.

The lack of playing time, however, does not come down to a lack of skill set, with the past U-20 2017 World Cup demonstrating Dominic Solanke's skill set and eye for goal with 3 goals scored in the competition. The past season saw him score his first Premier League goal against Brighton and Hove Albion and assist on a further occasion.

After a breakout season in 2015-16 with Vitesse in the Eredivisie in the Netherlands, which saw him score 7 goals and assist 1 in 25 league games, it has been painful seasons ever since for the young English striker.

A move towards Ibrox Stadium would give Dominic Solanke the playing time he deserves and so desperately craves. If Rangers were to go further down the Europa League competition and hope to mount a formidable title challenge they are going to need other outlets for goal other than the prolific Colombian striker Alfredo Morelos and misfiring Kyle Lafferty.

Given Steven Gerrard's Liverpool connections which has already seen Ovie Ejaria and Ryan Kent come in as loan deals, it'd be no surprise to see Solanke in the famous Rangers jersey in the near future.

#2 Cyle Larin, Besiktas

Alongside Bayern Munich's new signing Alphonso Davies, Canada hopes 23-year-old Cyle Larin can fire them to Qatar's 2022 World Cup. Cyle Larin at one point was Canada's greatest hope for a first actual elite football player. He began his career at Orlando FC after being selected 1st overall in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft.

Larin's career got off to a great start with him firing 17 goals in his first season, 14 goals and 3 assists in the 2016 season and 12 goals and 3 assists the following 2017 season. Since his move to Turkey with Besiktas however; his career has stagnated a bit.

Besiktas coach Senol Gunes has started Larin in only one game and featured him from the bench on only 5 occasions. He's yet to score and has assisted on only 1 occasion. Although he did manage to bag a hat trick earlier this season in a Europa League Qualifier against Faroe Island side B36 Torshavn.

Larin has an abundance of talent, his a young player having trouble performing when coming in and out of the starting lineup. A loan move towards Rangers would certainly recharge his lately stagnating career.

Alongside Colombian Alfredo Morelos it'd be an explosive clinical front-two which would certainly have defenders in Scotland's Premiership Division wobbling. Compatriot Scott Arfield would certainly aid his transition to Scotland.

#3 Sergio Leon, Real Betis

At 29, Sergio Leon still has plenty left to offer. Building on what was respectable 2016/17 Season, scoring 10 times from 33 appearances with Osasuna, he made the move up towards Real Betis for a reported fee of €3.50 million.

Last season he scored 11 goals and assisted 1 time from 31 appearances, 23 of which were starts. This season, however, has seen the 5'10 Spanish striker has featured on only 5 occasions with 1 only one appearance coming from the start.

Sergio Leon would bring some added flair to the Ibrox front line offering them another option up front. He is not known for his heading ability but has the technique to dribble his way past opponents. At 29, Sergio Leon would certainly prefer being part of the first-team then seeing his playing days winding down on the Real Betis bench.

#4 Moise Kean, Juventus

At 18 years of age, Juventus' 5'11 forward Moise Kean still has his whole career ahead of him. Moise Kean remains one of Europe's biggest prodigies who will certainly have a coveted career if he's disciplined enough.

On November 22, 2016, Moise Kean at just 16 years of age became the first millennial to feature in the Champions League when he came on as a substitute for Miralem Pjanić against Sevilla, displaying his name on the grandest stage of them all.

Last season in a season-long loan with Hellas Verona saw Moise Kean get crucial first-team action. He featured 19 times, 12 coming from the start, adding 4 goals to his name and contributing with 8 key passes. He had a shot accuracy of 40% with a dribble success rate of 46%. Not bad numbers for a tactical defensive league which is the Seria A.

Moise Kean is a good dribbler on the ball getting past defenders with ease, he'd have no problem getting past Scotland's Premier Division defenders and would certainly create opportunities for Alfredo Morelos.

He currently finds himself behind Cristiano Ronaldo, Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala in the depth chart at Juventus. Moise Kean would certainly want to start making a name for himself sooner rather than later. After having had a breakout season with Hellas Verona last season, a loan move with Rangers would certainly help further aid his promising career.

Edited by Raunak J