Alfredo Morelos: How will outgoing Rangers striker be remembered after six-year stint?

Regardless of allegiances, nobody will forget Alfredo Morelos.

The Colombia striker will leave Rangers this summer as the Ibrox club's all-time leading scorer in European competition. He will also depart having received the most red cards in the club's history.

Two stats that epitomise a box-office six-year spell served up by the 26-year-old.

It is difficult to think of another footballer who has polarised opinion more in Scotland in recent times, having flip-flopped between being irreplaceable to unreliable on countless occasions.

From title triumphs and toying with top-level European defences, to squad omissions and wrestling with the kitman, BBC Scotland reflects on the good and the mad of Morelos - a player who has typified the sheer daftness of Scottish football.

"When the opportunity is there, I score," Morelos said when he signed from HJK Helsinki in the summer of 2017.

He has fulfilled that promise 124 times for Rangers, finishing as their top scorer in four of his six seasons.

Not a bad record at all, considering just one of his strikes has come from the penalty spot. Factor in the 58 assists he has also provided, the striker has a goal contribution ratio of 0.87 per 90 minutes.

Morelos has posted those numbers despite his Ibrox career kicking off in the worst possible way, after being hooked at half time during his first start on one of the club's most embarrassing nights.

The striker was included in the starting line-up for the trip to Luxembourg to face minnows Progres Niederkorn in Europa League qualifying, a tie the Ibrox side went on to lose 2-1 on aggregate.

If you said that night Morelos that would go on to become Rangers' all-time leading scorer in Europe, while then-manager Pedro Caixinha stood in a bush apologising to the travelling support, it is doubtful at best whether anyone would have believed you.

But a record-breaking 29 goals across 63 European games have followed. The Colombian quite simply has a knack of rousing himself for big occasions under the lights. He has shown he is capable of single-handedly bullying top-class defences.

Standout performances against the likes of Borussia Dortmund en route to last season's Europa League final showed that, but injury ruled him out of the showpiece in Seville, where Rangers suffered a gut-wrenching defeat by Eintracht Frankfurt.

The thought of Morelos being fit for last May's final will forever be a 'what if?' for Rangers fans.

On the domestic front, despite form fluctuating at times, Morelos was integral to the success achieved under Steven Gerrard, who helped reinvent the striker along with a coaching staff that included current Ibrox boss Michael Beale.

The striker's game became so much more than just scoring. Before Gerrard's appointment, Morelos had never assisted more than eight goals in a season. Under Gerrard, he hit double figures for both goals and assists in three successive campaigns.

A combined total of 30 goals and assists across all competitions came in the 2020-21 title-winning season. For that contribution alone, Beale believes he will be remembered with "real fondness" by the Rangers support.

"He was part of an invincible league-winning side," he said. "That won't happen for a long, long time - or ever again.

"We paid £800,000 for an unknown boy from Helsinki and now he's known in every Rangers household. For that fee, Alfredo has more than paid back Rangers. I will have a lot of fond memories of working with him."

Despite Beale's kind words, it was only the previous week that the Rangers manager was lamenting the striker for his 25-minute cameo against Aberdeen. "You saw a difference when Alfredo came on in terms of energy. But not a positive difference."

Concerns over fitness, effort and attitude have been a common theme. If Rangers worked on a 'three strikes' policy, Morelos would have been lucky to last two seasons.

In March 2019, Gerrard said he could not "defend him any more" after a fifth red card of the campaign away to Celtic. In August 2020, he said he only wanted "players who are hungry for the shirt" after leaving the forward out against Kilmarnock.

At the start of this season, Morelos was also omitted from Giovanni van Bronckhorst's squad against PSV Eindhoven, just days after being sent off for an eighth time away to Hibernian.

That prompted high-profile criticism from former Rangers players. Kris Boyd labelled him a "hindrance". Kenny Miller said he was "no use". And, three months ago, Neil McCann called him an "idiot" for goading Hearts fans.

It has been unique for someone with such little limelight off the pitch to create such a media circus with his on-field actions.

The only interview he has given here even ended in uproar when a chat with Sky Sports was incorrectly translated, resulting in the broadcaster apologising after initially suggesting Morelos accused Celtic fans of racially abusing him.

For a player who had not received a red card before coming to Scotland, leaving with a club record of eight is staggering.

More than half came in the one season. That same campaign, 2018-19, he finished as the league's top scorer despite missing more than 20% of the games through suspension. Flailing arms and petulant kicks became just as common as his knee-slide celebration.

Morelos gave opposing players and fans ammunition. None more so than a Celtic support that revelled in a 12-game scoreless run in Old Firm derbies, including a 2019 League Cup final defeat during which he missed several chances and a penalty.

The Colombian went on to finally break his duck at the 13th time of asking during Rangers' unbeaten 2020-21 Premiership triumph, which ended Celtic's bid of a historic 10th straight title.

Whether he was impacting his team positively or negatively, Morelos alone made the fixture worth watching. With ultimate antagonist Scott Brown also in the mix, we were truly spoiled. Halcyon days.

But away from the on-field drama, the Cerete-born striker is a "loveable character" - someone who is "just full of carry on" and "always trying to wind people up," according to former team-mate Andy Halliday.

The former Ibrox midfielder also revealed, external that Morelos would wrestle daily with late kitman Jimmy Bell. With any other player, these are stories you would question the truth of. With Morelos, there is no need to think twice.

His Rangers career may be coming to an underwhelming conclusion, but on Wednesday, the home fans put his faults to one side and said farewell to a player who has contributed greatly to recent success.

The rest of Scottish football should also rue the loss of an unforgettable figure. Love him or loathe him, the Premiership is losing someone who has embodied the bonkers world of our game by providing six years of chaos, controversy and quality.

Alex: Morelos stepped up and provided goals at key times. He just doesn't have enough consistency or the right attitude. He is part of the 55 team, so he will always a legend regardless of anything else.

Billy: Morelos is a talented striker who scored some crucial goals, but he has an almost total lack of self discipline and is guilty of going missing.

Andrew: Overall, I think Morelos has been a good servant to Rangers. I know the last six months have been a let-down and he has just run down his contract, but over the time he has been here, I think he has done okay and scored loads of goals and is now our top scorer in Europe.

Ronnie: For five years, Morelos was our icon. He was our main man. He may have made the difference in the Europa League final. Our top European scorer of all time, you cannot question his value. Great Rangers players are loathed by rivals. Alfredo was a great. Sad he is leaving in these circumstances.