Former Rangers defender Alan Hutton has leapt to the defence of Nigeria international Cyriel Dessers, insisting the forward is being unfairly scapegoated following the club's Champions League exit.
The Gers were dumped out of the competition after a heartbreaking 2-0 defeat to Dynamo Kyiv at Ibrox.
Dessers was unable to replicate his heroics from the first leg when he scored, and was visibly frustrated as Rangers chased an equaliser.
The loss to Dynamo Kyiv was a bitter pill to swallow for Rangers, who were hoping to reach the group stage and secure a significant financial boost. The club had earmarked €40 million from the Champions League to strengthen the squad, but those plans are now in tatters.
Cyriel Dessers cannot shoulder Rangers goal burden alone
Hutton believes the focus should be on identifying the underlying issues that led to the defeat, rather than singling out individual players for criticism. In particular, he absolved the Dessers of any blame, insisting Rangers have to dip into the market to augment the 29-year-old, rather than replace him.
“The manager will be working hard, wanting more numbers from his creative players.
“[Vaclav] Cerny has just come in the building, the likes of [Tom] Lawrence and [Ross] McCausland, these guys will be wanting decent numbers. It’s not easy to bring in a goalscorer who is very creative as well. Lawrence has done well to stay fit and through pre-season.
“Does Dessers need help up top? Yes. You can’t rely on Dessers and Tavernier alone for numbers,” the former Scotland defender said while on punditry duty with BBC Sportscene.
Cyriel Dessers has scored twice in four games for Rangers this season, and is keen on breaking his record of 22 goals which he achieved last campaign.
