DOUGIE FREEDMAN has warned Rangers that FC Ufa shouldn’t be under-estimated if skipper Bojan Jokic is an example of their standard. Gers face the mysterious Russians at Ibrox with a Europa League group stage place the prize for the winners. Dougie Freedman during his time at Nottingham ForestPA:Press Association But Crystal Palace sporting director Freedman signed Slovenia captain Jokic during his spell as manager of Nottingham Forest in 2016 — and was immediately struck by the full-back’s similarities to an English legend. Freedman said: “He’d played in Serie A in Italy then Villarreal in Spain and I knew all about him. “Forest were under a transfer embargo at the time, so it was hard to get players in but we managed to get Bojan on loan. “He was exactly what we needed. He’s a Stuart Pearce type of player — aggressive, no-nonsense. Bojan Jokic in action for Slovenia last yearGetty Images - Getty “He’ll do whatever it takes to win. I don’t know who plays on the right side for Steven Gerrard but they’ll know they’ve been in a game. “It might be x-certificate, post-watershed stuff because that’s the approach he takes. Bojan’s a competitor, to put it mildly. “He played the game on the front foot from the minute he arrived. He liked to make sure the guy he was playing against knew he was there. “If he’s the standard of player Ufa have, then this might be a difficult tie for Rangers.” Jokic, who played in both of Slovenia’s World Cup qualifiers against Scotland last year, hit the ground running when he moved to the City Ground in January 2016. Freedman recalled: “He’s a boy who made it his business to be known. RELATED STORIES LUST FOR LAFF Gerrard predicts Kyle Lafferty will be a big player for Rangers this season Coll to arms Ex-Rangers target James Collins in line for shock return to West Ham YOU INSPIRE ME Docherty hoping to follow in McGregor’s footsteps during Shrewsbury loan FOR THE WIN Goldson says Gers’ unbeaten start has created winning mentality at Ibrox ‘IT BROKE MY HEART’ Lafferty desperate to redeem himself at Ibrox after exit six years ago 'I WILL BE BACK’ Jamie Murphy vows to come back stronger than ever after nightmare injury “He came in, said hello to everyone, and got down to work. He has a big personality with plenty of self-confidence and it wasn’t slow in coming through. “He wouldn’t accept slackers or people going through the motions. He speaks perfect English and would let people know what he thought. BRING IT HOME Kyle Lafferty vows to help Rangers win league title No55 “If telling people to liven up didn’t work, he’d go through someone to get the message across. “He’s getting towards 100 caps for his country and you don’t have the career he’s had by waiting for things to happen.” Keep up to date with ALL the latest news, transfers and goals from Scottish football plus fixtures, results and live match commentary
Source: Scottish Sun, News
Source: Scottish Sun, News
