Kris Boyd expects Kevin Kelsy to kick on for Rangers after getting his first goal for the club in the best way possible.
After missing a big chance against Motherwell, the striker broke his duck for his new club by firing in the second against Celtic, in between two brilliant Dan Neil strikes to earn a massive Premier Sports Cup victory.
As a former centre forward, Boyd knows how important it is to get off the mark. Doing so against Celtic is doubly important for Kelsy.
Boyd said: “Every striker goes into every game expecting to score. If you’re leading the line for any club, you want to get your name on the scoresheet. Now, this isn’t disrespect to any other club I played for. But with Rangers or Celtic, there is an added pressure on a goalscorer.
“If you’re the current striker, fans will always look back to the strikers who have been there before. You’ll be compared to those guys from the past and that can be difficult to deal with.
“If a former striker has scored X number of goals then a new one comes in, all of a sudden they’re expected to carry that on. At Portland Timbers, who would Kelsy have to compare himself against? Me? That wasn’t very good!
“But seriously, scoring that goal will take the heat off Kelsy, 100 per-cent. He missed a big chance against Motherwell when he put it over the bar.
“As a striker, when you join a new club, you want to get off the mark as quickly as you possibly can. The big thing for Kelsy is that it’s been against their arch rivals. He’s up and running now and will hope to continue it.
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“I’ve always said that you want to score against Celtic because that’s what gives you legendary status among the supporters.”
Kelsy will also require his teammates to make sure they keep providing him with the required service, and also make sure they are a goal threat themselves.
Boyd added: “Right now, it’s probably most important for Rangers to kill off games against other teams. That’s where you look at strikers like Kelsy and ask ‘Right, can you guarantee 20 to 25 goals a season?’
“Then you look for others to chip in like Neil did at the weekend. Celtic have had that advantage over Rangers for a number of years.
“It hasn’t just been the burden of the striker, others have chipped in from all over the pitch. From Kelsy’s point of view, to get up and running, it will do him the world of good.
“He should feel confident going into a game after scoring against your big rivals. He’s moved to a new club and people expect him to get goals because he’s arrived for a big fee. But it doesn’t always work that way.
“Look at Kasper Hogh, there’s a lot of negativity around him at the moment. The price tag doesn’t guarantee success or goals. What you need is team-mates around you to create chances for you to score.”
