'Back with a bang' - Rangers boss Steven Gerrard reveals instruction that helped Alfredo Morelos bag Aberdeen double

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard believes Alfredo Morelos will have a ‘huge’ part to play in the remainder of their push for the Premiership title after his double earned the 2-1 win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie which puts his team 22 points clear of Celtic at the top of the table.
Alfredo Morelos celebrates with Borna Barisic after scoring his second goal in Rangers' 2-1 win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)Alfredo Morelos celebrates with Borna Barisic after scoring his second goal in Rangers' 2-1 win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)
Alfredo Morelos celebrates with Borna Barisic after scoring his second goal in Rangers' 2-1 win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)

Morelos has struggled in front of goal for much of the campaign but produced two superb finishes as Rangers racked up a 15th consecutive victory in the league.

The Colombian international has now scored 10 goals in 27 appearances this season and Gerrard is confident that ratio will improve in the coming weeks and months.

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“Alfredo is back with a bang which is probably the most pleasing thing, aside from the points, for me today,” said Gerrard.

“In terms of the job he has been doing for the team this season, he has been pretty selfless. The effort and application has been there.

“He has suffered a little bit, as most forwards do from time to time, with his confidence in front of goal.

“But you saw that return today. His two goals were excellent. There have been signs of it recently - his goal against St Mirren and his chance against St Johnstone. He’s looked a lot more dangerous.

“He deserved his Man of the Match award today and if we keep him in the place he is in now, he is going to be a huge help to us going forward.

“We have told him to play closer to the goal, be in the box more. It's quite natural if you are a striker who is not scoring goals in the volume that you want and your confidence is affected that you drop deeper away from the goal. You start coming short too much instead of being selfish and getting yourself into the box.

“You saw both his goals today came from him attacking the goal frame right by the penalty spot. That's where we need our number nine.”

Gerrard sought to play down the significance of Rangers’ huge lead over Celtic who have four games in hand ahead of their meeting at home to Hibs on Monday.

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“We don’t look at the gap,” he said. “There are a lot of games in hand with the situation, so we just enjoy this win.”

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