Alfredo Morelos laughed in the face of Rangers fans after costing them two points against Hibs and Kris Commons can't understand their continued support for him.
Rangers led 2-1 at Easter Road at the weekend when already down to 10 men. John Lundstram was controversially sent off by Willie Collum after 66 minutes when the Scouser cynically brought down Martin Boyle to halt a Hibees attack.
James Tavernier’s spot-kick had been cancelled out by Boyle before Tom Lawrence restored Rangers’ advantage prior to Lundstram’s dismissal. But Morelos, who had only been on the park for around 15 minutes after coming on as a sub, made their task even harder. He swung an arm at Marvin Cabraja and caught the Croat in the face, prompting Collum to flash another red and reduce the visitors to nine men. That proved costly as Josh Campbell fired in a stoppage time equaliser to snatch a dramatic draw for Lee Johnson’s men.
It was yet another blot in Morelos’ disciplinary copybook. His bewildered smile as he left the park has drawn heavy criticism from Commons, with the former Celtic star at a loss as to why the Light Blues faithful continue to indulge the Colombian.
He wrote in his Daily Mail column: “Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez was sent off for headbutting an opponent in a match against Crystal Palace at Anfield last Monday night. When I was watching the game on TV, I felt sure that would be the most idiotic incident I saw on a football pitch all week. But Alfredo Morelos wasn't far behind. His red card against Hibs at Easter Road on Saturday was equally unforgivable given the circumstances.
“Rangers were already down to ten men following the dismissal of John Lundstram. They needed Morelos to dig in and do a job for them as they tried to defend a 2-1 lead.
“What they got, though, was yet another act of childish petulance from the Colombian striker and ultimately it led to his team dropping two points. Anyone who thought he had matured and got rid of this side of his game would be best advised to think again. This was truly brainless stuff.
“We aren't talking about the actions of a daft young boy here. Morelos is 26-years-old. His age and experience mean that he should be viewed as one of Rangers' more experienced and reliable players.
“He should be coming into the prime of his career. Yet, not for the first time as a Rangers player, we're now almost a month into the new season and he still looks totally unfit.
“He's been available for selection for the past few weeks since returning from injury over the summer, but has yet to start a game this season. This is a guy who is supposed to be Rangers' main man. He should be bursting a gut to prove his fitness and get back into the team.
“But, clearly, Giovanni van Bronckhorst just doesn't fancy him right now. The fact Morelos never even got off the bench against PSV in the Champions League qualifier last Tuesday told its own story.
“For the life of me, I don't understand the continued support shown to Morelos by some sections of Rangers supporters. In their eyes, he can do no wrong. I found it embarrassing that some fans were actually singing his name when he got sent off against Hibs.
“Morelos was then pictured on the TV cameras laughing after Willie Collum had quite rightly shown him the red card for lashing out with an elbow. I don't imagine Van Bronckhorst would have seen the funny side of it. Nor did captain James Tavernier, who branded the red card 'stupid'. All of which begs the question.
“When Morelos is so unfit, untrustworthy and patently unreliable, why do Rangers fans continue to indulge him? This is a guy who quite literally laughs in their face when he costs the team what would have been a priceless victory given that they were down to ten men.
“Steven Gerrard defended Morelos time and time again when he first took the job at Ibrox, only to eventually lose his patience. Perhaps this is what happens when you indulge a player once too often. They develop an arrogance and start thinking they can do whatever they want and get away with it.
“Those were the days when Morelos knew he would walk straight back into the Rangers team following a suspension because the team relied on him so heavily. But that's not the case any more. He's playing second fiddle at the moment, with Antonio Colak currently the first choice up front for Van Bronckhorst.”
READ NEXT
