RANGERS failed in their bid to snatch their tenth premier division title in a row from Celtic's grasp at the weekend, but they also left Tannadice, where they beat Dundee United 2-1, virtually certain that their most influential player of recent weeks, Jorg Albertz, would miss the Scottish Cup final next week.
The German midfield man was shown a red card by Scotland's World Cup referee, Hugh Dallas, after aiming a kick in anger at United substitute Steven Thompson, who had tackled him late.
In most cases, under the new rules, that would have meant Albertz missing the next league match. In this instance, that would be the beginning of next season, but there is an exemption to this clause when the sending-off is for ''violent conduct.''
As Albertz did raise his foot, and Dallas brought out the red, rather than yellow card, it seems certain that the midfield player will miss the great finale to the season against Hearts, which will be a huge disappointment to him and the Ibrox following. Rangers manager Walter Smith said yesterday: ''We will have to wait to see what the referee's report says, but, obviously, if we lose Jorg, it would be a blow.''
The better news from Smith is that the muscle injury sustained at Tannadice by Brian Laudrup - he came off midway in the second half - is not considered a hindrance to his chances of taking part in the final, which will be his last game for Rangers. ''Brian felt his muscle tighten and he thought it sensible, with the cup final in mind, to come off as a precaution,'' he said.
The Dane was in the news off the field as he launched a surprising attack on David Murray, accusing the club chairman of ''going behind my back'' to claim a transfer fee for his move to Chelsea. ''If Rangers continue to ask for a fee, I will have to rethink my position,'' he said.
Laudrup, who cost Rangers #2.3m from Fiorentina almost four years ago, has signed an agreement to go to the London club but may now opt to go elsewhere. He might not have enamoured the Chelsea chairman, Ken Bates, either, when he referred to Bates' recent description of Scottish football as ''a reserve league'' by saying: ''He clearly doesn't know what he is talking about.''
That kind of statement could be a big hint that Laudrup does indeed intend to change his mind and perhaps head back to Denmark. His brother, Michael, is believed to have quit Ajax at the weekend and that may well mean that Brian, if he does pull out of the London move, will still not take up the Dutch option.
Meanwhile, disappointment also seems more and more likely now for striker Ally McCoist, whose chances of being involved in the World Cup squad for France seem to be slim. The 35-year-old, who resurrected hopes that appeared non-existent earlier in the season, played only the last 23 minutes of the game at Tannadice and that may not have been enough to convince Scotland coach Craig Brown, who will announce his squad on Wednesday, that he should stand by the man who has been a hero so often for his country.
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