Youssef Chermiti's Injury: A Major Setback for Rangers

Youssef Chermiti’s season has been thrown into doubt by serious anterior cruciate ligament damage, suffered just hours after Rangers rejected a major offer for the striker.

The 22-year-old Portuguese forward crashed into the advertising boards during Sunday’s 2-1 home defeat to Hibernian, following a heavy challenge as he chased a ball in behind. The impact stopped Ibrox cold.

He stayed down. Then came the signal – arm raised, face contorted, summoning the medical staff with urgency. His afternoon was clearly over. The fear now is that his campaign might be as well.

Rangers later confirmed on social media that Chermiti “will be out of action for a significant period of time”, language that usually points to months rather than weeks on the sidelines for an ACL injury.

A brutal twist after a £22m decision

The timing could hardly be crueller.

On the very day Rangers turned down what has been reported as a £22m bid for Chermiti, the club’s record signing since Tore Andre Flo in 2000 crumpled behind Raphael Sallinger’s goal. A sliding-doors moment, played out in real time on the Ibrox turf.

At Monday’s shareholders’ meeting, chairman Andrew Cavenagh was asked whether Chermiti should have been risked with serious money on the table. His answer was blunt.

“Just because someone lobs an unsolicited offer in on one sheet of paper, you don't yank a player from a really important match,” the American said.

The board chose to back the team sheet, not the balance sheet. Ninety minutes later, that decision looked far more complicated.

Chermiti, who joined from Everton in September 2025, has become central to Rangers’ attacking plans. Capped at under-21 level by Portugal, he has made 43 appearances for the club, starting 30 and scoring 15 goals. A developing asset, and until Sunday, a rising one.

McInnes’ early reign hit hard

Derek McInnes has barely had time to settle into the Ibrox dugout, yet already he is dealing with the sort of problem that can shape a season.

From the main stand, BBC Sport Scotland’s Kheredine Idessane described wincing as Chermiti hit the boards and collapsed in a heap. It looked bad immediately. It has proved every bit as serious.

McInnes had spoken before kick-off about transfer interest, with reports in Turkey and Scotland linking Galatasaray to the striker.

“I'm led to believe the club's valuation of the player hasn't been met,” he told BBC Scotland. “It's no surprise that he's a player who's got a big (price) tag on him and he's got high potential, but thankfully he's our player and that will continue to be the case.

“We’re trying to build a team here at the minute and we're trying to still bring additions to the team that helps us add to the good players that we've got, including Youssef. So it's not something we would encourage at any point.”

Those words now carry a different weight. Chermiti is still Rangers’ player, but McInnes must build without him for a “significant period”.

For a manager trying to impose his ideas and restore authority at a demanding club, losing his main striker so early in his tenure feels like a jinx.

Recruitment urgency and a striker puzzle

Cavenagh has tried to steady the mood by confirming that “three to five” new signings are still expected. That will sound encouraging to McInnes, who may now have to fast-track the hunt for another centre forward.

He already had questions in attack. Now they are unavoidable.

Lawrence Shankland has yet to ignite his Rangers career. The goals that flowed so freely elsewhere have not arrived in Glasgow. Ryan Naderi, given his chances, has not convinced as the answer to the team’s scoring problems.

Bojan Miovski is on the books but has yet to play a competitive minute under McInnes, his role still theoretical rather than tangible. On paper, Rangers have options. On the pitch, the goals column says something else.

McInnes had turned to Chermiti to lead the line in both of the past two matches, a clear signal of trust. That plan is gone. A new one must be written on the fly.

Europe looms without the main man

There is no time for self-pity at Ibrox. Not with Europe on the horizon.

Rangers now have to find a way to see off Jagiellonia Bialystok in Europa League qualifying without the striker they had built their attack around. The margin for error tightens; the scrutiny sharpens.

ACL injuries do not just test a player’s body. They test a club’s depth, its recruitment, its resolve. Rangers have gambled on keeping their asset rather than cashing in. Now they have to live with the consequences and find the goals from somewhere else.

The image of Chermiti lying behind the goal, arm raised in distress, may linger for a while around Ibrox. The real question is how long Rangers’ season can stay on course without him.