Glasgow Rangers sporting director Kevin Thelwell made a bold move during the summer transfer window when he swooped to sign Youssef Chermiti from his former club Everton.
The Light Blues paid £8m to sign the Portugal U21 international from the Premier League side, which is the highest fee they have paid for a player since the £12m move for Tore Andre Flo in 2000.
youssef-chermiti-rangers (2)
Because of that transfer fee, Chermiti's performances for Rangers his season have been under the spotlight, and he has failed to justify the huge outlay as of yet.
Pundit Michael Stewart described his finishing as "so poor" against Celtic in the League Cup semi-final earlier this month. Fellow pundit Ally McCoist also noted on TNT Sport that the striker is "showing nothing" to prove he was worth the fee paid for him.
Chermiti has scored one goal in 13 appearances in all competitions for the Light Blues this season, per Sofascore, which may be why pundits like Stewart and McCoist have been harsh on him.
However, the former Premier League flop is not the only summer signing who has struggled at the top end of the pitch this season, as Bojan Miovski has failed to live up to expectations.
Why Danny Rohl should drop Bojan Miovski
Danny Rohl should ruthlessly ditch the summer signing from Girona from the starting line-up because he struggled once again in the 3-0 win over Dundee last weekend in the Scottish Premiership.
bojan-miovski-rangers-rohl
The Macedonia international was handed the chance to led the line at Dens Park, but was removed by the German head coach at half-time after a dismal first-half display, with zero shots and two out of nine duels won, per Sofascore.
Miovski was signed from Girona for a fee of up to £4.2m and arrived with a big reputation in Scotland, thanks to his form for Aberdeen in the past, as shown in the graphic below.
bojan-miovski-aberdeen-stats
However, pundit Charlie Mulgrew recently noted that there is more pressure on him at Ibrox. The ex-Celtic defender said: “When you play for Aberdeen, you can get away with not scoring for three or four weeks. At Rangers, you don’t get six or seven games to find your feet. You’re in the spotlight and you need to hit the ground running, and that’s why there are question marks around him.”
Miovski, who was described as "non-existent" by one Rangers podcaster, has struggled to deal with the pressure of leading the line for the Gers, as shown by his form this season.
Bojan Miovski - 25/26 Premiership Europa League
Appearances 8 4
Goals 1 0
Minutes per goal 506 N/A
Big chances missed 3 1
Big chances created 0 0
Assists 0 0
Ground duel success rate 32% 44%
Aerial duel success rate 29% 17%
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the left-footed marksman has not offered much in the way of quality in front of goal or reliability out of possession in the Scottish Premiership or the Europa League.
Miovski should be in the prime years of his career at the age of 26, but his performances for the Scottish giants suggest that the opposite is true, as he has struggled badly in comparison to his previous form in the division, with just one league goal.
This is why Rohl should ditch him from the starting XI, and possibly even from the club in the January transfer window unless he can turn his form around in the next few weeks.
However, as aforementioned, Chermiti has also failed to impress since his £8m move from Everton, which is why the manager may need to get creative with his team selection.
With this in mind, Rohl should ruthlessly drop Miovski from the starting line-up by unleashing Mikey Moore in a brand-new role as a centre-forward at Ibrox.
Why Rangers should play Mikey Moore as a striker
Rangers signed the England youth international on a season-long loan from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer and he endured a difficult start to life at Ibrox.
mikey-moore-rangers
The 18-year-old forward did not provide a goal or an assist in his first five outings in the Premiership, but he has registered a goal and an assist in his last four matches, per Sofascore, which shows that the youngster has been improving.
Moore started as a right-midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 against Dundee at Dens Park last weekend. However, it was by drifting into a central position that he created and scored his first goal of the season.
The teenage whiz looked far more comfortable playing quickly and directly in a central position through the build-up to this goal, which suggests that Rohl could get more out of him by playing the Spurs loanee in a new role.
In fact, his overall career statistics, for Spurs at first-team and academy level, indicate that he is more likely to deliver goals and assists when playing in a central position.
|Mikey Moore's career (U18, U21, and first-team)|
|Position (appearances)|Goals|Assists|
|---|
|Left wing (19)|4|6|
|Attacking midfield (10)|6|4|
|Centre-forward (7)|11|4|
|Right wing (10)|1|0|
|Left midfield (1)|0|1|
|Right midfield (1)|1|0|
|Stats via Transfermarkt|
As you can see in the table above, Moore has scored 17 goals and provided eight assists in 17 starts as a striker or as an attacking midfielder, whulst his numbers as a winger, on either flank, are not as impressive.
With this in mind, the English attacker could thrive if unleashed as the striker in the team ahead of Miovski and Chermiti, given his goal at Dens Park and his record for Spurs at youth level.
Rangers-Mikey-Moore
Danilo played as the number ten against Dundee, behind Miovski, and the Brazilian could interchange roles with Moore as a fluid front two in that 4-2-3-1 system, with both players capable of switching between striker and attacking midfield throughout matches.
That could cause problems for opposition defenders, who could get confused about who to step out to or who to mark, and create some interesting dynamics in the final third when Rangers are building attacks.
Therefore, Rohl should ruthlessly drop Miovski from the starting line-up in order to unleash Moore in this new role, as it could be an exciting tactical change for the Light Blues.