What Rangers Fans Can Expect From Abdallah Sima

Late last night Graeme Croser of The Mail claimed Rangers were close to sealing a loan move for Brighton’s Abdallah Sima. The 22-year-old spent last season on loan at French side Angers. Despite joining Brighton two summers ago, the Senegalese forward has yet to make his Brighton debut.

Brighton reportedly paid €8m to prize Sima away from Slavia Prague so if there is a buy option on this loan, it won’t be cheap. A loan move to Rangers would represent a chance for him to get back to form and perform on the European stage. This is a rumour that has excited some sections of fans due to his performance for Slavia against Rangers in the Europa League in the 20/21 season.

The Numbers

• 34 Appearances (19 Starts)
• 5G/1A
• 4.81 xG
• 13% Goal Conversion Rate
• 0.5 Key Passes Per Game
• 4 Big Chances Created

As much as these clearly aren’t outstanding numbers, it’s worth noting that Angers were the worst side in Ligue 1, managing only four wins all season. The forward has struggled to regain the impressive form he showed at Slavia Prague. This has caused his career to stagnate slightly and he’ll be hoping a move to Rangers could rectify this.

Playstyle

The rangy forward stands at around 6’1 and gives defenders nightmares with a combination of his height and pace. Technically he’s not completely polished, yet, but at times he shows signs of real technical ability. Physically he’s a threat, good in the air, quick across the ground and clever using his body.

Abdallah Sima is capable of playing on the right wing and as a central striker. Last season he predominately played as a striker for Angers. He likes to play off of the shoulder of defenders, to use his pace to his advantage. When the ball is out on the wing, he tends to position himself between the six yard box and the penalty spot. He’s not the type of striker to make darting runs to the front post but he still manages to position himself in clever positions to pick up goal scoring opportunities.

He has good striking instincts but still needs to work on his finishing ability if he’s to add more goals to his game. One positive though is that he managed to outperform his xG, showing that he can in fact score some difficult chances.

Unfortunately, his dribbling at times is reminiscent of Fashion Sakala, but his strength and balance often makes up for lack of finesse. Similar to the Zambian, he has an unpredictability to his game which can benefit Rangers going forward. If he was able to add numbers similar to Sakala then he’d be a welcome addition to the squad.

How Close is Abdallah Sima to Rangers?

Well, according to the report in the mail, this deal could be done as quickly as this week. Currently the deal seems to be just a one year loan. With the players profile it seems likely that Michael Beale and Rangers would be pushing for a buy option on this transfer.

With Brighton paying as much as they did for Sima, they’re unlikely to want to make much of a loss. They are a club that operates very cleverly in the transfer market and will look to get as much back for the Senegal international as possible.

It will be interesting to see how this one plays out in the coming days.

Conclusion

There’s no doubt Michael Beale and the recruitment team are working over time to get transfers done. That being said, this one seemingly came out of nowhere yesterday. As I previously mentioned, it will be interesting to see how this one plays out in the coming days.

Brighton always scout incredibly well and Sima is a player who impressed against Rangers previously so this is an interesting link. Personally, I’d only be interested in this one if there was a chance to make it permanent. That being said, I’d also be interested if there was a similar proposal to the Tillman deal.

How do you feel about this one? Does the prospect of Abdallah Sima excite you?