Glasgow Rangers have had a rare week without a game between weekends ahead of their clash away from Ibrox at Livingston in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.
The Light Blues may have preferred another game shortly after their confidence-boosting win over the league leaders last weekend, though, as they beat Hearts 4-2.
Danny Rohl’s side are only two points off the top of the table, sat in second place, and they face third-placed Celtic after their trip to Livingston.
Youssef Chermiti was the star of the show for the Ibrox giants against Hearts on Sunday, as the Portugal U21 international scored the first hat-trick of his senior career.
Signed from Everton for a fee of £8m, the 21-year-old centre-forward has not had it all his own way this season, but he is showing glimpses of why Kevin Thelwell splashed the cash on his signature.
Youssef Chermiti’s current market value
During the January transfer window, Turkish side Fenerbahce had a £13m offer turned down by Rangers for the Portuguese number nine, but it was not reported how much the club wanted for his services.
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Regardless, that shows that Chermiti’s market value has soared from £8m to £13m since he arrived at Ibrox last summer, given that a team was willing to spend up to £13m on him.
His form in big matches has helped his case because the former Premier League flop has scored six goals in his last three appearances against Celtic and Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.
Regardless, that shows that Chermiti’s market value has soared from £8m to £13m since he arrived at Ibrox last summer, given that a team was willing to spend up to £13m on him.
His form in big matches has helped his case because the former Premier League flop has scored six goals in his last three appearances against Celtic and Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.
He scored a brace against Celtic in a win at Parkhead at the start of January and a consolation goal in a defeat at Hearts at the end of December, with six of his seven league goals coming against the other two teams in the title race.
Whilst Chermiti has shown encouraging signs with his performances against the top teams in the division and was the subject of a £13m bid in January, there is a Rangers player who looks worth even more than the Portuguese star.
The Rangers star who looks worth more than Chermiti
Part of the club’s recruitment strategy is to sign young players for modest fees before developing and selling them on for profit, in the hope that they will join the likes of Calvin Bassey and Hamza Igamane among their most expensive ever sales.
One player who may be on his way to joining those ranks is central midfielder Nicolas Raskin, who signed from Standard Liege for a fee of £1.5m in January 2023, just over three years ago.
The Belgian star has racked up ten goals and 21 assists in 136 appearances in all competitions for the Light Blues in that time, and he is currently in superb form for Rohl in the league.
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Chermiti deserves the plaudits for his goals against Hearts and Celtic, but he has struggled – scoring just one goal – against the other teams in the league and is yet to hit double figures for the campaign.
The £8m signing from Everton is yet to find consistency in his play at the top end of the pitch, but Raskin has delivered consistently impressive performances in the middle of the park to make himself one of the first names on the teamsheet.
In the Premiership this season, the Belgian talent has started 23 of his 25 appearances, compared to Chermiti’s ten starts in 19 games, and delivered three goals and five assists.
Despite being a central midfielder, often playing in a deep-lying role, Raskin only has one fewer goal contribution (eight) than Chermiti has (nine) in the league for the Gers this term.
25/26 Premiership
Raskin
Rangers rank
Sofascore rating
7.48
1st
Tackles per game
2.4
1st
Interceptions per game
0.6
5th
xA
3.78
2nd
Assists
5
1st
Goals + assists
8
3rd
On top of his offensive quality from a midfield role, the £1.5m signing from Standard Liege has also averaged the most tackles per game in the league out of players who have played at least 50% of the games.