Aberdeen injuries mount up for Rangers clash with five key stars missing for Ibrox encounter
Yesterday at 02:30 AM
It's the time of year where the cold and wet weather conditions aren't great for the muscles of finely tuned athletes with Rangers and Aberdeen both short of a body or two.
Philippe Clement's woes are mainly in defence as the manager contends with the entire rearguard from the last time the two teams met being absent – some might argue that isn't necessarily a bad thing.
For the visitors, Jimmy Thelin will be without as many as five players who probably would have started against Rangers and who undoubtedly make the Aberdeen squad stronger.
Rangers vs Aberdeen sees both sides missing players
Clement will be buoyed by the return of Leon Balogun and James Tavernier to full training although they will probably make it no further than the bench in terms of the match day squad.
Both are badly missed given the shortage in their respective positions, especially with Man Utd and Union Saint Gilloise on the horizon too.
For Thelin, he is without; Dimitar Mitov, Vicente Besuijen, Jack MacKenzie, Slobodan Rubezic (suspended), and Jamie McGrath is a doubt.
The Dons have made some new signings, but it would be a surprise to see them thrown in at the deepend straight away.
| Position | Team | PlayedMP | WonW | DrawnD | LostL | ForGF | AgainstGA | DiffGD | PointsPts |
| 1 | CelticCeltic | 22 | 19 | 2 | 1 | 61 | 8 | 53 | 59 |
| 2 | RangersRangers | 22 | 13 | 5 | 4 | 41 | 18 | 23 | 44 |
| 3 | Dundee UtdDundee Utd | 23 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 31 | 24 | 7 | 37 |
| 4 | AberdeenAberdeen | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 32 | 30 | 2 | 35 |
| 5 | MotherwellMotherwell | 23 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 28 | 37 | -9 | 31 |
| 6 | HibernianHibernian | 23 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 34 | 36 | -2 | 29 |
When will Rangers injured quartet return to action?
When asked for an injury update for the visit of Aberdeen, the Rangers boss said:
"We had two players back in training with Tav and Leon Balogun, so we’re going to look tomorrow at how they are, if they have a reaction or not, and if they are able to be in a selection or not.
"So, it’s a positive to get players back. No, of course, they didn’t train much or anything, but it’s a positive that they are back."
“Yeah, I have a rough time schedule, but that’s for me and the medical staff in that way," Clement clarified when asked specifically about Jack Butland and Dujon Sterling.
"So, I will tell you guys when players are back, like I say now directly also. And I’m being open and honest that Tav and Leon just came back now. And that’s the best way to do it."
