Official: Rangers Sign Cedric Itten

[DMAA 3,603]

14 hours ago, Tannochsidebear said:

I don’t watch YouTube video montages of players, from what I’ve heard they never tell you the full story about a player, I prefer to make my mind up by watching them in the flesh (or on tv due to this lockout).  

Sometimes I think Youtube compilations can be very good. You could tell from Aribo's one that he was a very good player with huge potential. 

 

I think number 9s are harder because Youtube shows you they can score strikers goals, but the best strikers aren't distinguished by the type of goals they score but how often they can do it. 

[der Berliner 3,239]

17 hours ago, Tannochsidebear said:

Must admit I’ve never heard of this guy but I see he gets our famous number 11 shirt so he has big boots to fill and I wish him all the luck in the world and hope he can be spoken of alongside the other famous number 11’s in our hearts and memories many years from now.

 

I don’t watch YouTube video montages of players, from what I’ve heard they never tell you the full story about a player, I prefer to make my mind up by watching them in the flesh (or on tv due to this lockout).  I look forward to seeing Itten play and hope he hits the ground running and becomes an instants success.

Interestingly enough, when mentioning the 11 and a winger's shirt ... my first thought was of McCann (though he wore the 8 more often than not (?)) and Laudrup. But that all comes from an age where the 10 was a striker's shirt ...

[der Berliner 3,239]

Quote

 

However, Itten’s key strength is his heading ability.

He is clinical when it comes to using his head – a quarter of his goals this season have been headers.

 

... hm, if 25 % is a key strength, what are the other 75 %? ?

[the gunslinger 3,366]

The average for strikers is 11 percent with head.

[Rousseau 9,361]

 

[JFK-1 1,671]

He has an excellent mix of goals from headers and right plus left foot shots. Get the ball to him in range he's going to direct it goal wards with something. Three goals in two starts for Switzerland.

[JFK-1 1,671]

On 04/08/2020 at 13:01, ian1964 said:

 

Helps that he can speak English. Now he just has to learn Scouse and Scots.

[Malangsob 1,196]

15 hours ago, Rousseau said:

Just realised he's been given the No.11 shirt, following a long line of legends that could change a game single-handedly: Laudrup, Cooper, Albertz, McCann, and Josh Windass.

 

A lot to live up to.

And Josh Windass...lol!

[JFK-1 1,671]

5 Things to Know About the Exciting Swiss Striker
 

1. He Had a Standout Season With St. Gallen

Itten just had his best season for St. Gallen, and in fact the best of his career so far. He scored 20 goals in 36 appearances across all competitions, helping Die Espen finish second behind BSC Young Boys - their best league finish since 2001, and their best ever Super League season.

Itten scored 19 times and got seven assists in the Super League, a truly prolific campaign up front. He finished as the league’s second top scorer behind Jean-Pierre Nsame, with the best goal tally for a Swiss player since Alexander Frei, Switzerland's all-time leading goalscorer, in 2012.

The numbers do not lie for Itten, whose contributions have made up a third of all of St. Gallen’s goals this season. He will be a huge loss at the kybunpark after a dazzling season in Switzerland, but St. Gallen’s loss is undoubtedly Rangers' win.

2. He Scored Six Minutes Into His Switzerland Debut

Itten earned his first call-up to the Switzerland national team last November, picked for the Schweizer Nati’s Euro 2020 qualifiers. Vladimir Petković's side needed two wins from two to qualify, in their final games against Georgia in St. Gallen and away to Gibraltar.

He was a substitute against Georgia, but as the game stood goalless with 20 minutes to go, Itten replaced Albian Ajeti. Six minutes after his introduction to the game, he headed home brilliantly from Denis Zakaria's cross, securing a vital 1-0 win.

Itten deservedly started the next game against Gibraltar, scoring a brace as the Nati ran out 6-1 winners and qualified for the now-delayed tournament. His return of three goals in two games was the perfect start to life with the national team, as he hopes to make the final squad for the tournament next summer.

3. He's Excellent in the Air

If you have to choose one of Itten’s traits as his best, it is his heading. Every great striker is a marksman with their head, and the Basel-born man is no exception. Two of his three Switzerland goals were with his head, and he scored five headers this season alone for St. Gallen.

Standing tall at 6'2, it is no surprise that Itten is clinical in the air. He rarely wastes chances crossed into him, and is exactly the type of player you would want on the end of a tantalising cross.

Signing for a team who play with a lot of crossing is the perfect style for him, and it will certainly suit him well when he steps onto the pitch for the first time.

4. He Is a Product of FC Basel's Famed Academy

While Itten joins Rangers from St. Gallen, it all started at Swiss giants FC Basel. A Basel boy himself, Itten arrived at the club's academy in 2007 aged 10, with the RotBlau's youth setup renowned and admired across Switzerland.

During his time at St. Jakob-Park, Itten played alongside a number of current Swiss internationals. To name a few, he played with the likes of Borussia Dortmund's Manuel Akanji, Borussia Mönchengladbach's Breel Embolo and West Ham's Albian Ajeti.

Although Itten only managed four goals in 26 games for FC Basel, he has since flourished after loan spells at FC Luzern and St. Gallen. His record of 0.57 goals per game for the latter is a promising figure, one which earned him the move away to Scotland.

5. Itten Is The Perfect Target Man

Itten is the classic striker: always in the right place at the right time. His aerial prowess means he is effectively deployed as a target man, alongside his strength as a poacher. Whether he is playing as the lone striker or with a partner - such as Ermedin Demirović at St. Gallen - he can be relied on to find the net.

His positioning and awareness in the box is a crucial trait, always working his way into the box and in between the defenders. Itten’s simple yet intelligent runs cause many problems, as defences lose track of him and allow him in to bare in on goal.

Any team needs their striker to be expertly positioned, and that is something Itten has done since his early days at FC Basel. As long as he is getting quality service in the final third, he will have no trouble finishing off team moves and scoring goals.

https://www.90min.com/posts/cedric-itten-5-things-to-know-about-rangers-exciting-swiss-striker

[ChelseaBoy 2,232]

On 04/08/2020 at 19:19, Bill said:

I remember thinking the same about Mark Hately 

I thought the same about Chris Sutton.... and was right.