Hamza Igamane has been the face of Rangers side on the mend despite some testing results in recent weeks, his second half cameo against Motherwell producing two goals reminiscent of forwards of old.

The Moroccan embodies the return of grit and steel to the position of striker at Ibrox, a role occupied by distinguished figures in the club’s recent history.

However with eight games left to play in January alone, including Hibernian on Sunday, Philippe Clement faces one of his biggest tests in management.

The Rangers boss was widely mocked for his decision to bench Igamane and Vaclav Cerny against Motherwell on the back of advice from the sports science department.

Yet as he chases the Europa League, Scottish Cup and arch rivals Celtic in the league, he will be depending on the 22 year old to the point of potential injury or, risk his own future at the club should alternatives fail to deliver.

In good company

Far from earning their acclaim as false nines, striker’s have made names for themselves at Ibrox through tenacity and a relentless pursuit of goals.

As a new year rolls on, the classic centre forward of days gone by remains just as adored now as it was then.

Through the seasons, there have been those who have earned that kind of legendary status by delivering on a long term basis, à la Kris Boyd who finished four of his five seasons with Rangers as the league’s top scorer.

Igamane is a long way from that and it is more than likely he will be off long before Boyd’s five years, let alone Ally McCoist’s fifteen, with rumours already swirling that he has attracted interested from clubs in England.

Yet others have left their mark in far less time at Glasgow side.

Nikica Jelavic spent just a year and a half at the club but has remained a firm favourite amongst fans ever since.

Helped in no small part by his contributions to driving the side to a league title and a winner against Celtic in the League Cup to make it a double in 2011.

Always looking a cut above, he terrorised defenders with 30 goals in just 45 games but eventually the lure of the Premier League proved too strong, making his way to Everton in January 2012.

Despite the short stint, Jelavic is always a welcomed addition to the club’s ‘Legends’ games over a decade since leaving.

It is too early to say if Igamane will have the same impact of the Croatian or his strike partner in 2010-11, Kenny Miller, who managed an eye watering 21 goals in 18 games to win his third consecutive title at the club during his second of three spells with Rangers.

However with seven goals in ten games, including a double against Nice and a leveller against Tottenham, he seems to be on the right track.

Considering Igamane had managed just one in the eleven prior, it shows a remarkable improvement from a player who didn’t immediately hit the ground running as the aforementioned players did.

A lack of mental fortitude has been the stick with which this Rangers squad have been beaten as candidates up front struggled to replicate the steel of the last striker to etch his name into folklore.

Fiery boots to fill

Alfredo Morelos is as much loved at Ibrox as he is hated by fans from every club he has faced.

Seemingly as likely to score as he was to be sent off, the Colombian did not have the goal return of those before him but his win at all costs attitude propelled Rangers to a first Premiership title in a decade to stop Celtic winning the coveted ‘ten in a row’.

His time at the club ended on a slightly sour note, Morelos took every opportunity to express a desire to move away from the club as his contract ran down but Rangers have since struggled desperately to replicate his impact.

Following his exit, a flurry of players auditioned for the part of ‘Ibrox hero number nine’ but none quite fit the bill.

Kemer Roofe had his moments but his time in Glasgow was blighted by injuries as he was never able to be relied on during his four years at the club.

Three time Croatian international Antonio Colak’s star burned bright albeit briefly. An impressive 13 goals in 17 games was as good as it got before fading with niggles of his own and poor form.

Michael Beale arrived and sent the frontman packing to Parma after just one season in favour of Danilo and Cyriel Dessers.

The club are only just starting to see some return on their investment in the Brazilian and the much maligned Dessers has never felt the love from fans and his time at the club seems to be coming to an end.

Despite 22 goals in all competitions last season, which is no bad return, the striker’s perpetual habit of missing clear cut chances has not helped the fact that he does not fit the moult of the classic centre forward Rangers supporters have come to expect.

The question now is whether the ever growing weight of expectation will prove too heavy for the young man.

A New Hope

Igamane was not even included in the first three league squads of the campaign but just a few months on Clement would struggle to name a starting line-up without him.

Dessers was given a rare start against Motherwell in the last game of 2024 but had little to celebrate going into the new year as he was hauled off at the break and Igamane was tasked with salvaging something from the wreckage.

Two goals and a point that prevented a second consecutive defeat for the side highlights a growing dependency that has been compounded by the demand from fans to kickstart a run of wins off the back of their performance at Celtic.

Games against Manchester United and Union Saint-Gilloise in the Europa League are just two of nine the squad will have played by the end of the month.

Danilo’s return from injury and recent good form with two goals and two assists in just four games will alleviate some of the pressure but the Brazilian is at his best playing off a striker.

On the wing Cerny’s double digits have been a highlight in an otherwise grim season but the Czech Republic international’s loan comes to an end in the summer whilst goals have dried up for the previously free scoring James Tavernier.

Clement’s team selections show he no longer thinks he can rely on Dessers but in doing so time and time again, risks injuring Igamane, who is still adjusting to life in Scotland having only ever played in Morocco prior to his move in the summer.

Despite his short time at the club, the striker’s next steps into the shoes of Ibrox greats could be difference between the manager receiving a medal around his neck or a P45 in the palm of his hand.

No pressure then.