Youssef Chermiti Faces Long Road to Recovery After Injury

Youssef Chermiti faces a long road back after suffering serious anterior cruciate ligament damage – just days after Rangers rebuffed interest in their record signing.

The 22-year-old striker was injured in Sunday's 2-1 home defeat to Hibernian, crashing into the advertising boards after a heavy challenge left him off balance and unable to stop his momentum. What initially looked like an awkward collision has now been confirmed as a major setback.

Rangers announced on social media that Chermiti “will be out of action for a significant period of time”, a stark line that underlines the scale of the blow for both player and club.

It comes at a cruel moment in his Ibrox career. Signed from Everton in September 2025, Chermiti arrived with weighty expectations, reportedly becoming Rangers’ most expensive purchase since Tore Andre Flo in 2000. He had begun to justify that investment: 43 appearances, 30 starts, 15 goals, and the sense of a centre forward growing into the role of leading the line for a club of this size.

He is already capped at under-21 level by Portugal and widely viewed as one of the higher-ceiling players in the Rangers squad. That promise has not gone unnoticed elsewhere.

Before kick-off against Hibs, Derek McInnes addressed reports that Turkish champions Galatasaray had made a move for the forward. Speaking to BBC Scotland, the Rangers manager made it clear the club were in no mood to cash in.

“The club's valuation of the player hasn't been met,” McInnes said, underlining both Chermiti’s importance and the stance in the boardroom. A “big tag” and “high potential”, as he put it, were reasons to build around the striker, not sell him.

“Thankfully he's our player and that will continue to be the case,” McInnes added, stressing that Rangers are in the middle of constructing a squad, not dismantling one. The message was blunt: approaches for Chermiti were not welcome. “It's not something we would encourage at any point.”

Now the conversation shifts from transfer fees and valuations to rehabilitation schedules and recovery milestones. For a young forward who had begun to look at home in Glasgow, the challenge changes completely – from proving he belongs at Rangers to proving he can come back the same player.