Youssef Chermiti Injury: Rangers Face Tough Season Ahead
Youssef Chermiti’s season turned in a heartbeat, and Rangers may spend months counting the cost.
The 22-year-old striker faces a long spell out after suffering anterior cruciate ligament damage in Sunday’s 2-1 home defeat to Hibernian, an injury that arrived just hours after the club had rejected a major bid for him. One moment he was the focal point of Derek McInnes’ attack; the next he was lying in a heap behind Raphael Sallinger’s goal, arm raised, signalling trouble.
Rangers later confirmed on social media that Chermiti “will be out of action for a significant period of time”. In the language of football medicine, that usually means only one thing: months, not weeks.
From record buy to cruel blow
Chermiti arrived at Ibrox from Everton in September 2025, reportedly as Rangers’ most expensive signing since Tore Andre Flo back in 2000. It was a statement move, the kind of fee that comes with expectation and a sense of responsibility. He responded with 15 goals in 43 appearances, 30 of them starts, and the feeling that he was only just beginning to tap into his potential.
Portugal recognised it early, capping him at under-21 level. Rangers saw it every week. A powerful, developing centre forward, still rough around the edges but clearly one of the assets the club could build around – or cash in on at the right time.
That timing now looks brutal.
At Monday’s shareholders’ meeting, chairman Andrew Cavenagh was pressed on why Chermiti had started against Hibs amid heavy transfer interest. 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,” he said.
The implication was clear: Rangers believed they were right to play their main striker. Football, though, has a way of punishing even reasonable decisions.
The £22m question
The offer on the table, reported to be around £22m, was substantial by any measure of Rangers’ recent history. Before kick-off on Sunday, McInnes had been asked about reports that Turkish champions Galatasaray were the club testing Rangers’ resolve.
“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.”
The board had a choice: bank the money and wrap Chermiti in cotton wool, or back their valuation, reject what they viewed as an “unsolicited” bid and send him out to lead the line. They chose the latter.
If they could turn back time, would they make the same call?
A moment that changed everything
From the main stand at Ibrox, as Kheredine Idessane observed, the severity of the incident was obvious. Chermiti’s collision with the advertising boards after a jarring challenge drew an instant wince. He crumpled, raised his arm, and medical staff rushed over. His match was over on the spot. Rangers can only hope his season is not.
A cruciate ligament injury is, by definition, serious. When a club concedes publicly that a player is out for a “significant period”, the message between the lines is stark. Recovery is long. Rhythm is hard to regain. Plans need to be rewritten.
For McInnes, still in the early days of his tenure at Ibrox, it feels like a test of resolve arriving far too soon. On the same day Rangers turned down a potentially transformative fee, his main striker suffered an injury that could rule him out for months. If he was superstitious, he might call it a jinx.
Striker search back on the agenda
Cavenagh has tried to steady the mood, telling shareholders that “three to five” new faces are still expected to arrive. That pledge will sound even more urgent to McInnes now. A new striker may no longer be a luxury; it looks like a necessity.
Lawrence Shankland has yet to get his Rangers career going. Ryan Naderi, so far, has not convinced as the answer to the team’s shortage of goals. Bojan Miovski is on the books but has yet to play a competitive minute under the new manager.
McInnes had turned to Chermiti in both of Rangers’ last two matches, a clear sign of trust and of where he believed the goals would come from. That plan has been ripped up in an instant.
The task now is stark. Rangers must find a way to replace Chermiti’s presence and threat while navigating Europa League qualifying, starting with the tie against Poland’s Jagiellonia Bialystok. The Portuguese forward will not be there to help.
The club gambled on his value and his availability. The market will wait. The fixtures will not.
