NafisaRangers’ impressive victory over Motherwell has been overshadowed by a major concern surrounding Lawrence Shankland, with the club now waiting anxiously to discover the full extent of the captain’s hamstring injury.
Shankland was forced off after just seven minutes of Saturday’s 1-0 win at Ibrox, bringing a premature end to what had been a promising spell for the striker.
The Rangers captain had scored twice against Falkirk in midweek and was beginning to find his feet after his summer move, making the timing of the injury particularly frustrating.
Ryan Naderi replaced him and went on to score the only goal of the game, with Rangers producing arguably their best performance of the season despite failing to turn their dominance into a more convincing scoreline.
There is now hope that Naderi, Bojan Miovski and new signing Kevin Kelsy can provide enough attacking depth while Shankland is unavailable.
However, former Rangers midfielder Scott Brown believes losing the captain could represent a significant blow on more than one front.
Who else will miss Lawrence Shankland?
The biggest concern is that Shankland’s latest injury could keep him out for a considerable period.
McInnes has already admitted that the striker felt a sensation similar to the hamstring injury he suffered at Hearts last January, when he was sidelined for around three months.
That has inevitably raised questions about how much football Shankland could miss this time around, although Rangers will have to wait for the scan before a definitive timescale can be established.
Brown believes the consequences could stretch beyond Rangers, particularly with Scotland also preparing for their next international camp.
Speaking on BBC Sportscene, he said:
“You can hear McInnes before, talking about how he might be out for a little while, which is obviously devastating,” he said.
“For himself and for Scotland and Rangers. He got two goals against Falkirk and was just starting to find his feet as captain.
“That’s where he wanted to be.”
Shankland’s form makes the setback even more painful.
After arriving at Rangers with considerable expectations, the striker had begun to show signs of settling into McInnes’ system and becoming the focal point of the attack.
His goals against Falkirk appeared to offer another indication that his confidence was growing, only for the Motherwell game to bring an abrupt interruption.
The exact length of his absence will depend entirely on the scan and subsequent medical assessment, meaning Rangers cannot yet put an official return date on their captain.
Lawrence Shankland to miss absolute dream at Rangers
The timing of the injury could hardly be more unfortunate given what Rangers have coming up.
The Ibrox side face St Mirren on Wednesday before the domestic schedule delivers two enormous Old Firm meetings.
First comes the Scottish Cup quarter-final against Celtic, a match carrying huge significance for McInnes after Rangers’ recent run of three consecutive league victories.
Those wins against Aberdeen, Falkirk and Motherwell have helped transform the mood around the club following the doubts that surrounded the manager earlier in the campaign.
The performance against Motherwell was particularly encouraging.
Rangers dominated large portions of the match, created several opportunities and could arguably have won by a much wider margin had they been more ruthless in front of goal.
Naderi’s introduction also provided an immediate reminder that McInnes does have attacking options at his disposal.
But replacing Shankland over an extended period is a different challenge altogether.
The Rangers captain was beginning to enjoy the attacking freedom afforded to him by the team’s improved performances, and his absence could deprive McInnes of one of the most important figures in his side.
The first Old Firm meeting will therefore arrive with Rangers potentially having to cope without their captain, while the return fixture at Celtic Park follows only a week later.
If Rangers have serious ambitions of challenging near the top of the Premiership, the second meeting will be particularly important.
Having Shankland available for such fixtures would obviously be the ideal scenario.
Unfortunately for Rangers, there is now a genuine concern that their captain could be watching from the sidelines instead.
Everything will depend on the scan, and until the results are known, it would be premature to put a firm number on the games Shankland will miss.
But with his previous hamstring problem keeping him out for three months, Rangers supporters have every reason to be nervous about the latest setback.
For McInnes, the challenge is now to ensure the excellent momentum built up over the last three matches does not disappear just as Rangers enter one of the most important periods of their season.
Nafisa
