Tom English highlights Lawrence Shankland concern after Rangers Europa League exit

Tom English questions Lawrence Shankland’s fitness after Rangers Europa League exit

Lawrence Shankland has come under scrutiny after Rangers’ disappointing Europa League exit at the hands of Jagiellonia Bialystok.

Rangers entered Thursday night’s second leg at Ibrox needing to overturn a 2-1 aggregate deficit, but could only draw 1-1 on the night.

Shankland gave Rangers the perfect start by converting an early penalty, bringing the aggregate score level and briefly raising hopes of a comeback.

Those hopes were ended in the second half, however, when Nik Prelec headed Jagiellonia back in front on aggregate. Rangers were unable to find another response and were eventually knocked out, dropping into the Conference League play-off round.

The result sparked an angry reaction inside Ibrox, with supporters making their feelings known as boos echoed around the stadium at full-time.

Tom English raises Shankland fitness concern

While Shankland found the net from the penalty spot, BBC Sportsound pundit Tom English was far from convinced by the striker’s overall display.

English questioned whether the Rangers captain is currently fit enough to be playing, particularly given the significant expectations surrounding him following his summer arrival from Hearts.

“Lawrence Shankland looks like he’s just unfit,” English said during the broadcast.

“I don’t know why he’s in the team, I understand he’s the captain, fine, but he doesn’t look like he should.

“He looks nothing like the Lawrence Shankland of last season. I thought the whole thing was really poor.”

Shankland arrived at Ibrox after producing an impressive scoring record with Hearts and was expected to become an immediate focal point for Derek McInnes.

Instead, his early performances have raised questions over whether he is ready to consistently deliver at his new club.

The pressure is likely to increase after Rangers’ European disappointment, particularly with Shankland having been handed the captaincy.

Rangers face major questions

The defeat has also renewed concerns over Rangers’ recruitment strategy.

The club have again brought in a large number of new players, leaving McInnes with the difficult task of integrating them into his team.

There are already questions over whether Rangers have prioritised adding numbers rather than securing enough proven quality.

Shankland was expected to be different after arriving on a free transfer, but his slow start has added to the frustration.

Other summer additions, including Cammy Devlin and Dan Neil, have also struggled to make the expected impact so far.

McInnes now needs to find solutions quickly. Rangers must recover from the European disappointment before their next fixture, with St Mirren visiting Ibrox in the cup.

After the Europa League exit, Rangers will now have to fight their way through the Conference League play-offs, making a positive response against St Mirren even more important.