ALFREDO MORELOS and Europe go hand in hand. The latter brings the best out of the former who looks at his very best on Thursday nights.
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The Colombian has been the centrepiece of Steven Gerrard’s European revival at Rangers these past three seasons and is the club’s record scorer in Europe after surpassing Ally McCoist.
Morelos’ inability thus far to score in Old Firm game has been used against his ‘big game player’ mantra. But his constant high-level performances on the continent disproves that. Goals in big moments have arrived against Porto, Benfica and Feyenoord to name a few.
In a rare sit-down interview with UEFA, Morelos opened up on his goalscoring exploits, pre-match rituals and why he identifies with his well-versed nickname ‘El Buffalo’.
“Good morning to you and all the fans, I am very happy to be sharing this time with you and to talk about the good spell that Alfredo Morelos, the club and my team-mates are enjoying,” he said.
“Forwards live for goals. Scoring a goal is a big motivation for a forward. To clinch victory for the team is a great feeling. This keeps me going every day, every game and in every match.”
Morelos was at his very best in Rangers’ round of 32 tie with Antwerp in this season’s Europa League. He had eight goal involvements from the nine Rangers scored across the two ties.
His start to the league season was slow. Morelos was the subject of bids from French club Lille and Gerrard conceded at one point that his head had been turned. But since the turn of the year he has looked back to his best and played a key role in Rangers title run-in.
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“Before going into a game my wife tells me, get it into your head that you’re going to score,” he added.
“You’ll be there to score, you’re going to play well. You’re going to be the best player out there.
“Look, I’m a very hot-headed player. I don’t head into matches feeling down. I take to the pitch on a high. Why? So that defender thinks ‘this player looks strong and will score goals.’ I identify myself with the buffalo because I’m powerful. My coach at Independiente Medellin gave me the nickname.
“I achieved some great things in the Europa League. This is the reason for me to keep going and improve. To not stand sill and to keep moving forward every day. My objective is to score many more goals.”
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