OPINION
Eyebrows have been raised at Ibrox recently with Nikola Katic seemingly usurped by Joe Worrall as first-choice centre-back alongside Connor Goldson.
It has however been revealed that the 21-year-old defender has suffered an injury which has forced him to withdraw from the Croatia Under-21 squad for the upcoming international break.
As reported on Croatia’s official Twitter account, Katic has pulled out of the Croatia squad with an unspecified problem and will remain with his club in the coming two-week break.
Nikola Kati? propušta okupljanje Hrvatske U-21 zbog ozljede. Želimo mu brz oporavak! ???
Naknadni pozivi upu?eni su Petru Bosan?i?u i Darku Nejašmi?u.#BudiPonosan— HNS (@HNS_CFF) October 8, 2018
This may go some way to explain Steven Gerrard’s decision to play Worrall alongside Goldson in their Europa League match against Rapid Vienna and their win against Hearts at the weekend, with Katic also on the bench in their loss v Livingston.
It is likely that this is a niggling injury which has been troubling Katic recently, hence Gerrard’s reluctance to play him despite his strong start to life in Scotland.
And, should this problem continue to dog the 21-year-old after the international break, then Worrall has a golden chance to nail down his starting spot alongside Goldson.
The Nottingham Forest loanee has had an inconsistent start at Ibrox, hugely impressing in Europe while seemingly struggling domestically, but he did show good improvement this weekend against the league leaders.
And while there will always be those who prefer Katic as an option alongside Goldson, should Worrall impress Gerrard in training in the coming weeks and then play well in their matches after the international break, he will surely nail down that spot.
Centre-back is not a position which managers like to chop and change, so an in-form Worrall will surely be seen as a safer option than a returning Katic.
Considering his dodgy start to life at Rangers and Katic’s assured performance earlier this season, this is a huge chance for Worrall, and one he will not have expected.
It is also one he must take, or Katic will certainly be recalled and subsequently nail down that spot for himself.