49ers could sign best finisher since Morelos at Ibrox

If there is one deciding factor in the Premiership title race, it may all come down to the strength of the centre-forwards. Does Danny Roll really have the attacking power to lead Rangers to the title at Ibrox?

Summer signings Youssef Cermiti and Bojan Miovski have shown promise since Rohr’s arrival, but both have scored just seven league goals in 2025-26, with captain James Tavernier still leading the way with five top-flight goals.

Charmit’s derby double took some of the pressure off his young shoulders, but the £8 million man is in danger of following the same path as recent Gers strikers such as Danilo, Cyriel Dessers and Sam Lammers.

Add in the likes of Antonio Colac and Fashion Sakala and there has been a huge upheaval in the centre-forward ranks in recent years, with no player matching Alfredo Morelos’ influence at Glasgow.

Love it or hate it, the Colombian scored a lot of goals. Will the Light Blues finally be able to fill that gaping hole this month?

Rangers could gain an advantage in race to sign in-demand striker

One look at the Premiership scoreboard and it is clear to see why Hearts remain in contention for the title. The Jambos are blessed with midfield players Claudio Braga and Lawrence Shankland, who have both scored 20 goals this season.

Two of this season’s other top five scorers are Hibernian’s Kieron Bowie and Motherwell’s Tawanda Maswanhise, both young forwards who have been linked with a move to Ibrox.

Martin O’Neill’s Celtic were also among the options for the pair, with Leeds United’s Joel Pillow reportedly in the mix in recent weeks, but that interest ultimately fizzled out.

According to Football Insider, there is a good chance Rangers will sign the Surinamese international instead, given the links between the two clubs.

In fact, the fact that 49ers-owned Enterprise owns both Rangers and Leeds, and Parag Malate is a key figure for both clubs, could give Rolle and co an advantage if they want to sign the 26-year-old, according to reports.

With connections like this seemingly paying off in Celtic’s pursuit, why shouldn’t Rangers at least try their luck with a move of their own?

Why Piroue could be Rangers’ best finisher since Morelos

As mentioned, Glasgow are still waiting for someone to truly fill Morelos’ role, with the 29-year-old scoring 124 goals in 269 games for the club before leaving on a free transfer in 2023.

He certainly wasn’t perfect, but there was an unrelenting streak to his game in front of goal, never missing more than 13 ‘big chances’ in his last three seasons at Ibrox, according to Sofascore.

For comparison, the aforementioned Dessers missed 27 and 20 ‘big chances’ respectively in his two full seasons at the club, highlighting a substantial decline in quality from midfield onwards.

With Chelmiti and Miovski both struggling to improve their form, Dutch-born marksman Pirouet, who has enjoyed stellar results south of the border, could very well be the man to end the long wait for a truly clinical No.9.

Although currently on the fringes at Premier League level, the left-footed player has been a consistent performer over the past four seasons in England’s second tier, including spells with Leeds and former club Swansea City.

He scored at least 19 goals in three of those four campaigns, although he would still reach double figures in 2023-24, when he scored 13 goals in his first year at Leeds. His missed chances rate is also very similar to Morelos’.

Such credibility is even more impressive considering that the EFL Championship is considered the seventh best league in the world, according to Global Football Rankings, and he should be able to hit the ground running in the Premiership.

Pillow’s qualities can be seen in the fact that Leeds manager Daniel Farke even deemed him the “best finisher” of his career, ahead of former Norwich City talisman and one-time Celtic failure Teemu Pukki.

It remains to be seen whether Rangers will actually use the Elland Road links to land Piroue, but they would be foolish not to at least ask, even if he’s on loan.

Rolle, who have only lost once in the Premiership so far, are doing all the right things, but the lack of a true Morelos-style number nine could be the difference between finishing the season empty-handed or not.