ON OCTOBER 17 2019, Rangers had a 90 per cent win record at Ibrox for that season.

On October 17 2020, Rangers had a 100 per cent win record at Ibrox for that season.

On October 17 2021, Rangers have a 60 per cent win record at Ibrox for this season.

Fortress Ibrox has been breached. A side struggling to find its rhythm looks to have completely lost the advantage of playing at its own home.

Signs of improvement were there during the Hearts game on Saturday, but no one can be too surprised that the visitors grabbed a late equaliser.

What’s possibly surprising is that Rangers dropped points while creating a considerable amount of good chances for the first time this season. Inevitably, a number of those chances fell to Alfredo Morelos.

What happens when you have a player that can be your best and worst asset at the same time? 

He isn’t the only one in the squad, but Morelos has had a slow start to the season.

With five goals to his name for the season, Morelos’ sharpness has abandoned him. For a player that sits on the precipice of 100 goals for the club, he has oddly never looked like a natural goalscorer. A number of his finishes over the year have been tougher than chances he’s passed up.

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That was the case once more during the Hearts game. His finishing was extremely poor and reached a crescendo when he put the ball past the post from six yards out with the goal gaping in front of him.

All of Morelos’ better work is taking place outside of the box. For the last two seasons, a tactical tweak has seen Morelos regularly drop into midfield, involving himself with the build-up and with the anticipation of dragging centre backs out of position. It has often worked well and does continue to do so despite the ropey form of this season.

The way Morelos pings the ball across the park is incomparable to what any other striker can do. His cross-field passes are more accurate than his shots. He can open up the play and bring a full back into play when the momentum looks dead. His link-up play has considerably improved when dropping back; where it’s going wrong for Morelos is in the final third.

Not only is his finishing disappointing, but he also seems to slow the play in and around the box. Such ponderous decision making is having an adverse effect and on a number of occasions, it ends with attacks petering out.

There likely is no solution to the Morelos problem on the horizon. He will continue to play, but it leaves a question mark over recruitment that there is no viable alternative when he falls short of standards.

When Morelos appeared on the brink of leaving last summer, Itten and Roofe signed and were expected to be his replacements. 

Roofe continues to contribute - but in addition to Morelos, not as an alternative. Itten is now in Germany and looks unlikely to return. Sakala has since been added but Gerrard has shown little faith in him.

If Morelos gets injured tomorrow - for all his faults - he leaves a gaping hole that the club hasn’t found a way to fill.

It may have felt this way for his entire spell at the club, but the clock is ticking on Morelos at Rangers. His contract will soon enter the final eighteen months and it would be incredibly surprising to see him sign a new deal. His prime value has passed and, barring a miraculous turnaround, it would be remarkable to see a bid close to the £16 million offered by Lille last summer.

The situation has been poorly managed. The money that it will likely cost to replace him will be of poor value compared to the money - if any - the club now brings in for selling him.

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Rangers say they’ll be patient in implementing a player trading model, but is Morelos now an example of the club being too late to implement it.

Is the scouting adequate? Are Rangers savvy enough when negotiating with other clubs and agents? Are expectations in the market realistic for a club that has virtually zero track record in selling players?

In the short term, Rangers will be a better team if Morelos finds some sharpness in the final third. In the long term, Rangers will be in a better position if they learn from the mistakes that accompany attempts to maximise Morelos’ value.

This is a player that has scored 25 goals in Europe for the club, 59 goals in two seasons, and bullied centre-backs across the continent. Yet Rangers have been unable to capitalise upon that.

Alfredo Morelos. Can’t live with his abject finishing, can’t live without his effective build-up play. Can’t live with his replacements, can’t live without the money the club should have brought in for him.

He is the quandary Rangers are no closer to solving.