One game left for Morelos to break 30-goal barrier for Rangers

Alfredo Morelos has just one game remaining in his quest to break the 30-goal barrier for Rangers this season.

The Colombian has been stuck on 29 since netting against Kilmarnock back in March, with a four-game ban for lashing out at Celtic skipper Scott Brown halting his momentum.

Jermain Defoe has claimed his starting slot since then and the 22-year-old will now have to hope boss Steven Gerrard gives him a chance to become the first Ibrox player in a decade to reach his target when the Light Blues travel to Rugby Park for their final game of the season.

Here Press Association Sport’s Andy Newport takes a look back at the last five Gers strikers to reach the 30-goal milestone in a single season.

Kris Boyd (Season 2008/09 – 31 goals)

Boyd may not have been renowned for his work outside the box but inside he was simply deadly. The former Scotland poacher claimed 31 goals as he helped Walter Smith’s team kick off a run of three straight championships. Boyd – who could feature for Kilmarnock against Morelos’ team this weekend – has since gone on to be crowned the deadliest marksman in SPL/SPFL history.

Marco Negri (1997/98 – 37 goals)

Had it not been for an eye injury suffered while playing squash with compatriot and Light Blues team-mate Sergio Porrini, the Italian hitman may have gone on to rip up the record books. The former Perugia ace fired an incredible 33 strikes before the bells had even rung out for Hogmanay – including five in one game against Dundee United. However, the goals quickly dried up after his unfortunate mishap with Porrini and he would contribute just four more as Gers missed out on 10 in a row.

Mark Hateley (1993/94 – 30 goals)

The Englishman formed a lethal pairing with Ally McCoist but with his strike partner out injured for the majority of the campaign after breaking his leg on Scotland duty, it fell to Hateley to shoulder the scoring burden and he did not let Smith down as he contributed the goals that took Rangers to their sixth straight title.

Ally McCoist (1986/87 – 36 goals; 1987/88 – 42; 1991/92 – 39; 1992/93 – 49)

The club’s all-time top goalscorer smashed through the 30-goal barrier on no less than four occasions, twice earning him the European Golden Boot. McCoist’s most prolific campaign came in 1992/93 and saw him blast 49 goals as Rangers claimed the treble as well as coming within one win of a place in the Champions League final. He may have hit more had it not been that leg break sustained while playing for Scotland against Portugal which saw him miss the final eight games of the season.

Derek Johnstone (1978/79 – 38 goals)

Jock Wallace’s Gers claimed their second domestic clean sweep in the space of three years and largely thanks to Johnstone’s goals. The big frontman contributed 25 in the league as Gers pipped Aberdeen to the title, while he also left the Dons reeling with his winning strike in the final of the Scottish Cup. Although he was named Scotland’s double player of the year, he was overlooked by boss Ally MacLeod during an ill-fated World Cup campaign in Argentina and failed to see a single minute of action.