ALFREDO Morelos joined an illustrious group of players on Sunday as he netted his 100th Rangers goal.
He's the 18th player to reach the milestone in the club's 150-year history.
The Colombian arrived at Ibrox in the summer of 2017 from HJK Helsinki with little fanfare but quickly endeared himself to the Light Blues support.
He’s already broken the club’s European goalscoring record, surpassing Ally McCoist and his record of 100 goals in 199 appearances is mightily impressive.
His header against St Mirren proved to be the winner for the champions as they cemented their place at the top of the Premiership table.
Of his century of goals, here are my top 10.
10. Winner v Hibs in 2-1 victory at Easter Road November 2017
This was vintage Morelos. After receiving the pass from Jamie Barjonas on the edge of the penalty area, the Colombian twisted Paul Hanlon inside out before rifling past Ofir Marciano from an acute angle at his near post in the Hibs goal.
⚽️ Alfredo Morelos vs Hibs
— crossy (@crossy72_) July 11, 2020
📅 13/12/2017
Paul Hanlon is an absolute embarrassment to his family for this defending, big fan of wee Jason Holt roaring “YASSS” when it hits the net. pic.twitter.com/PGCTCbhx4i
9. Winner v Hibs in 1-0 victory at Easter Road January 2021
This was a stunning team goal that was started and ended by Morelos.
El Bufalo picked the ball up in a wide area under pressure from Ryan Porteous, he plays the ball back to James Tavernier who finds Ryan Jack, Jack then plays the ball inside to Steven Davis who flicks it onto Joe Aribo who, in turn, flicks it onto the onrushing Morelos who fires home with his left foot. On what was a bobbly pitch not conducive to good football, this goal was an absolute joy to behold.
Hibs 0-1 Rangers
— Geeb 🎙 (@Geeb1872) June 9, 2021
Rangers moved closer to their 55th title with a difficult 1-0 win away at Easter Road thanks to an Alfredo Morelos goal. pic.twitter.com/gBlz5lu0Ta
8. Second goal in 3-1 win v Hearts at Ibrox October 2018
It was a pleasure to be in the ground when Morelos scored this goal, Daniel Candieas robbed Demetri Mitchell in the box before playing a perfectly weighted ball into the path of the Colombian who back-heeled the ball over Zdenek Zlamal and into the back of the net.
⚽️ Alfredo Morelos vs Hearts
— crossy (@crossy72_) July 11, 2020
📅 07/10/2018
Lovely wee backheel. pic.twitter.com/Qne1FTsixx
7. Second goal in 3-1 win v Ross County at Dingwall August 2017
Perhaps a surprise inclusion but I’ve all the time in the world for a goal such as this. After a tremendous header to open the scoring, Morelos added his second in the most bizarre of fashions. The Colombian slid in to try to nick the ball off Scott Fox after being played a difficult back pass but the Staggies keeper looked to have got the better of the forward only to dally on the ball and for Morelos to get up and steal the ball from his toe and tap into an empty net.
A goal summed up perfectly by Hugh Burns in commentary on Rangers TV when he said Fox “had been done up like a kipper”, but it just shows the hunger of Morelos to get goals, even when it looks like a lost cause he never gives up and he was rewarded on this occasion.
6. Equaliser in 1-1 draw v Porto at the Estadio do Dragao October 2019
This was a simple yet stunning goal that earned Rangers a point on their Europa League travels. The cross from Borna Barisic is exquisite and Morelos takes a great touch to set himself before rifling into the top corner to send the travelling support wild. Great counter attacking play culminating in a top drawer finish.
5. Winner in 1-0 win v Legia Warsaw at Ibrox August 2019
Cometh the hour, cometh Morelos. With the Europa League playoff heading for extra time, El Bufalo delivered on the big stage with a pinpoint header into the corner in the 90th minute to send Steven Gerrard’s men into the group stages for a second successive season. The cross from Jordan Jones is world class but the execution from Morelos at such a crucial stage of the game was exceptional.
4. Second goal in 4-1 win v Celtic at Ibrox May 2021
As Morelos was racking up the goals domestically and in Europe there was one team that he just struggled against…until last season.
Celtic’s disastrous season was compounded when Morelos netted his 55th league goal against them at Parkhead to ensure Rangers unbeaten league record remained intact. He wouldn’t have to wait long for his second goal against their Old Firm rivals when he netted in the thumping victory at Ibrox. After controlling the ball on the edge of the box he nutmegged Scott Brown with his right foot before blasting the ball into the roof of the net with his left foot. It’s an even more impressive strike when you consider his xG was just 0.06. His celebration was pretty decent too as he imitated the celebrity chef Salt Bae.
3. Second goal in 2-2 draw v Feyenoord at De Kuip November 2019
After heading Rangers level in Holland, Morelos’ second header was truly world class. He picks up the ball on the edge of the box before finding Glen Kamara, the Finn then plays it into the feet of Barisic who delivers a delicious cross onto the head of Morelos who manages to glance the ball into the far corner giving the goalkeeper no chance. This was Morelos at his very best and he broke the record that evening for scoring in four consecutive European games.
🐃 Alfredo Morelos with two headed goals against Feyenoord ⚽️⚽️#UEL pic.twitter.com/Pvd00WWqep
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) March 24, 2021
2. Second goal in 4-2 win v Aberdeen at Pittodrie February 2019
Aberdeen boss Derek McInnes described Morelos as “fantastic at leading the line” on an eventful night at Pittodrie that saw the Colombian net a double before being sent off along with Dons defender Scott McKenna for an innocuous off the ball incident.
His second goal in the victory was nothing short of magnificent. Ryan Kent slipped him the ball at pace at the edge of the box, just right of centre, he took a touch with his right foot before side footing the ball into the corner with his left foot. Great strikers make scoring goals look easy and this was certainly one of those. Again, the xG of 0.06 highlights just how difficult it was to convert. A quite stunning goal.
1. First goal in 2-0 win v Porto at Ibrox November 2019
It was difficult to rank Morelos’ Top 10 Rangers goals in order but this one takes some beating.
The Colombian does extremely well to control Ryan Jack’s cut back with his left foot, the ball takes a slight bounce which enables him to open up his body before firing into the far corner with the same foot on the volley. A jubilant Tom Miller on Rangers TV described it as “absolutely incredible” as Ibrox shook with delirium. It was an outstanding individual goal against a European heavyweight on one of the biggest stages in world football.
It was another vintage Morelos performance and he was rightly named Man of the Match as Rangers secured a vital three points that would help them progress to the knockout stages.
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