Glasgow Rangers head into the final international break of the year on a relative high after three positive results across three different competitions for the Ibrox side.
The Light Blues came from 1-0 down to beat Motherwell 2-1 in the semi-final of the League Cup at Hampden Park, which has set up a final against Celtic next month.
Philippe Clement’s side then battled it out in Greece to secure a 1-1 draw with Olympiacos in the Europa League, to keep them in the fight to secure automatic qualification for the last 16.
The Scottish giants then won 1-0 against Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday, thanks to an early goal from centre-forward Cyriel Dessers.
Rangers had to play the bulk of those three games without attacking midfielder Tom Lawrence, though, as he went off injured in the first half against Motherwell.
The Wales international faces up to six weeks out injured with a thigh issue and the Belgian head coach has had to find solutions to his absence, with Mohamed Diomande moving up into a number ten position instead of his usual role in the double pivot.
Tom Lawrence's form this season
Lawrence has suffered from injuries throughout his time at Ibrox and these persistent issues could play a part in the club’s thinking when it comes to renewing his contract.
His current deal at Ibrox is due to expire at the end of May next year and it remains to be seen whether or not the Scottish giants are willing to extend it.
Since his move to Glasgow on a free transfer from Derby County in the summer of 2022, Lawrence missed 56 matches for club and country in his first two seasons in Scotland, and is projected to miss ten games with his current injury – taking the total to 66.
His fitness problems are frustrating because his form on the pitch for the Light Blues this season has been, largely, impressive, both in the Premiership and in the Europa League.
On the European stage, the 30-year-old playmaker has scored two goals and created one ‘big chance’ for the team in just three appearances – scoring against FCSB and Lyon.
Appearances
8
Starts
7
Goals
3
Big chances created
3
Assists
2
As you can see in the table above, Lawrence has provided a big threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals from an attacking midfield position in the top-flight.
However, his quality on the pitch is not useful to Rangers when he is consistently unavailable for selection, which is why Clement and Nils Koppen may be looking at potential signings to come in and take his place long-term, with his contract coming to an end next summer.
Rangers eyeing up Romanian star
At the end of last month, the Daily Mail reported that Rangers are interested in FCSB attacking midfielder Darius Olaru ahead of the January transfer window.
The outlet stated that Clement and his recruitment staff are big fans of the Romania international and that they could make a move for him ahead of the second half of the season.
It added that his current contract with the club is not due to expire until the summer of 2028, which means that Rangers will have to splash out a significant sum of money to convince FCSB to part ways with him.
The 26-year-old magician is valued at €7m (£5.8m) by Transfermarkt but it remains to be seen how much exactly the Romanian giants will demand for his signature if any clubs come in with offers in January.
This is not the first time that the Gers have been linked with an interest in the player. He was reportedly a target for former Rangers boss Michael Beale in the summer of 2023.
FCSB owner Gigi Becali also named Rangers as one of the clubs that could be in the market to sign the attacking midfielder from his side back in the summer of 2022, when Giovanni van Bronckhorst was in charge, with Ross Wilson as the sporting director.
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Despite a whole new recruitment set-up, with Clement and head of recruitment Koppen, Olaru appears to still be a target more than two years on from that initial interest, and he could come in as a brilliant replacement for Lawrence.
Why Rangers should sign Darius Olaru
The Scottish giants should swoop to sign the 26-year-old whiz because he is physically and technically reliable, having avoided serious injuries and produced regular quality on the pitch in recent seasons.
Since the start of the 2022/23 campaign, Olaru has only missed six games through injury, 60 fewer than Lawrence in the same period, and this suggests that he is more likely to be available week-in-week-out for Clement.
So far this season, the Romanian wizard has already contributed with ten goals and five assists across 21 appearances in all competitions for FCSB, which shows that he has made a big impact at the top end of the pitch as both a scorer and a creator of goals.
The Rangers target has also averaged 2.2 key passes per game across ten matches in the Super Liga this term, whilst no midfielder or forward has averaged more than 1.6 per match in the Premiership for the Light Blues.
FCSB chief Mihai Stoica once claimed that Olaru is “like” Manchester City magician Kevin de Bruyne, due to their creative quality, and that was evident on his form last season.
Appearances
36
Goals
15
Big chances created
19
Key passes per game
2.1
Assists
5
As you can see in the table above, the Romania international created a whopping 19 ‘big chances’ in 36 league games for his teammates, to go along with 15 goals.
These statistics show that Olaru has de Bruyne-like creativity, as the Manchester City star has provided 171 assists in 390 matches for his club, but has not been rewarded enough by his teammates, whose wasteful finishing meant that his assist tally did not fairly reflect his creativity.
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Overall, the FCSB sensation could brilliantly replace Lawrence by coming in to provide reliability in his availability as well as being an attacking midfielder who can consistently contribute with goals and assists.