Rangers must dodge disaster with £10m man labelled ‘one of the worst players in the league’

They say you should never fall in love with a loan player but, as Vaclav Cerny takes on talisman status at Ibrox, that is certainly easier said than done from a Rangers perspective.

It’s almost impossible to imagine, now, that there was a time when the VFL Wolfsburg loanee was eliciting jeers rather than cheers from some sections of the Rangers fanbase.

Vaclav Cerny pleaded with the Gers faithful to back him rather than boo him following a poor display against Hibernian and a missed sitter against Lyon back in October.

The quality of his football has said more than words ever could since Hibs came to town that bleak Saturday afternoon, however. Not only is Cerny one shy of breaking the 20-goal barrier for goals and assists as a Rangers player, the former FC Twente winger has provided an emphatic riposte to those who felt the Glasgow giants would never manage to adequately replace the threat of Daniel Candeias on the right-hand side.

Of course, with the Czech Republic international only at Ibrox on a temporary basis – and as Wolfsburg demand an £8 million fee Rangers cannot afford – a slow-burning love story could yet end in bitter heart-break.

Morgan Whittaker form should warn Rangers off potential Vaclav Cerny replacement

After being priced out of a move for Abdallah Sima in 2024, history could be repeated one year on.

So it would be a dereliction of duty, really, if Rangers were not at least drawing up a list of potential replacements. Malaysian rising star Arif Aiman Hanapi has been linked, and would cost only a fraction of the fee Wolfsburg want for Cerny.

Morgan Whittaker may yet enter the picture once again, meanwhile. The Plymouth Argyle schemer was Rangers’ proposed answer to that right-wing issue before Cerny breezed in and solved the equation.