Clement must drop 4/10 Rangers man to unleash “tremendous” star

Glasgow Rangers ended their 2023/24 Scottish Premiership campaign with a dramatic 3-3 draw with Hearts away from Ibrox on Saturday afternoon.

The Light Blues conceded a stoppage-time equaliser to the home side, who had also gone 1-0 up in the game, to end the season eight points adrift of their rivals at the top of the table.

Philippe Clement failed to secure the league title in his first year with the Scottish giants but will now hope to use the experience of this year to push on and win the division next term.

However, before their focus can turn to next season, the Gers have a SFA Cup final clash with Celtic at Hampden Park to think about before the summer transfer window begins.

The Light Blues have an opportunity to secure a domestic double of cups after they won the League Cup final against Aberdeen during the first half of the campaign.

This means that they have a chance to end the season with more trophies (two) than the Hoops (one) if they win on Saturday, albeit having missed out on the biggest prize.

They may, however, have to defend better than they did against Hearts, given that they let in three goals, and Clement could have more options to pick from when his side heads to Hampden, which would then allow him to brutally ditch Leon King from the starting XI.

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After the 3-3 draw with the Jam Tarts, the Belgian head coach spoke of the importance of Abdallah Sima and Ridvan Yilmaz both getting minutes under their belt off the bench, hailing it as “positive”.

Sima’s availability could be huge for Rangers from an attacking perspective, as the Brighton & Hove Albion loanee has the potential to be a big player in the final.

As you can see in the table above, the Senegal international carries a significant goal threat, with 11 goals in 17 league starts, and could cause problems for the Celtic defence.

Yilmaz, meanwhile, has created six ‘big chances’ in 16 starts in the Premiership from left-back, which suggests that the Turkish dynamo could offer attacking quality down the flank from a defensive position.

Clement also said that he is hoping that Leon Balogun will be fit enough to be available for selection, after he was one of three centre-backs – alongside Connor Goldson and John Souttar – absent from the matchday squad on Saturday.

The Gers boss must now ruthlessly ditch King from the lineup at Hampden if the Nigerian colossus is fit and available to play in the cup final.

Why Leon King must be dropped to the bench

The Rangers academy graduate should be dropped to the bench due to the defensive frailties on display in his last two starts for the Scottish giants.

Injuries to Balogun, Souttar, and Goldson have provided him with an opportunity to impress in the last two matches against Dundee and Hearts alongside Ben Davies at the heart of the defence.

The Light Blues, unfortunately, conceded a whopping five goals in those two outings and King’s defensive work left a lot to be desired, particularly in his aerial contests.

Across the two games against Hearts and Dundee, the 20-year-old defender competed in 11 aerial duels against opposition forwards and only won two. He lost nine of those contests as his opponents found it far, far, too easy to get the better of him in the air.

After the match on Saturday, Football Insider’s Sean Fisher awarded him a poor player rating of 4/10 and wrote that it was an ‘underwhelming’ performance from the youngster, who was given the runaround by Lawrence Shankland.

The Hearts striker won six of his eight aerial duels and scored for the away side, which shows that he dominated Rangers in the air and did enough to get himself on the scoresheet, as they failed to keep him quiet.

This is why Clement must now brutally drop King down to the bench as the inexperienced, with 36 first-team appearances for the club, centre-back has not stepped up to the plate in the past week and does not have the experience of playing in big games.

Whereas, Balogun, should Clement have him available, is almost the perfect player to bring in to replace him, given his quality on the pitch this season and history of playing in big matches.

Why Leon Balogun should be unleashed at Hampden

The veteran defender should be unleashed from the start at Hampden as he has been a better defensive option than King in the Premiership during the 2023/24 campaign.

He also has the edge over the youngster when it comes to experience as the 35-year-old colossus has played 83 games for the club in all competitions, and has won the Premiership, the League Cup, and the SFA Cup.

Balogun lined up at the heart of the defence alongside Goldson as the Gers kept a clean sheet in a 1-0 win over Aberdeen at Hampden in the League Cup final earlier this term, which speaks to his ability to step up on the big occasion.

The Nigerian titan, who was once hailed as a “tremendous” player by ex-Rangers man Alex Rae, has also been a star on the pitch when called upon in the top-flight this term.

As you can see in the table above, the experienced giant has outperformed King in the Premiership with his fantastic defensive work for the Scottish giants.

Firstly, the ex-QPR star is able to win possession back for his side through tackles and interceptions significantly more frequently than the youngster, which suggests that he has a greater chance to cut out Celtic attacks in the final.

It is also night and day between the pair when it comes to their success in aerial duels and that is one of the biggest reasons why Balogun must start at Hampden, as he could be needed to deal with the threat of Adam Idah.

The 6 foot 3 Celtic striker won 64% of his aerial contests in the Premiership and could bully King in the air, which is why Balogun must be brought in to nullify the Norwich City loanee.