There was a chance to leave for big bucks - but Alfredo Morelos' decision to stay might be one some at Rangers could be thinking about amid his contract saga according to a former coach.
The striker has faced criticism this season in the final year of his Ibrox deal but netted twice during a 5-2 victory over St Mirren on Saturday, that takes the gap at the top of the Premiership down to nine points ahead of Celtic's match with Kilmarnock on Sunday. There's been no word on a new deal for Morelos and ex-midfielder Kevin Thomson wonders what could have been for player and club ahead of a big summer for manager and former assistant Michael Beale.
Back in 2019 while Steven Gerrard was boss, it was reported Morelos turned down a money-spinning move to Chinese club Hebei Fortune. He was claimed to be after a move in Europe with Lille prominently linked, but again nothing happened and the rumour petered out. Thomson was speaking to a caller on the BBC's Sportsound and when it was put to him that Morelos could have been sold by Rangers for millions a couple of years ago, the former Ibrox youth coach responded emphatically by saying it was the player's decision not to go to China while insisting the club turned down Euro advances.
The pundit said: "He didn't want to go. I sat with Steven Gerrard and Michael Beale in the office, he didn't want to go.
"I sat in the building, you can't just sell a player at his highest value unless a club whoever that is wants to buy him, his club want to sell him and the player wants to go.
"If the player wants to run his contract down, it's irrelevant how good you are at player trading model. I think his attitude has been poor but they had a big offer from a Chinese club and he wanted to go to Lille, France, Europe, and the money wasn't good enough.
"So they didn't want to sell him at that time. Hindsight, they might have sold him, he didn't want to go for the big money."
