He may not have scored on Saturday but Antonio Colak delivered a performance we haven’t seen since his early goalscoring burst at the start of the season.

One of the main gripes from certain quarters is that he simply cannot lead the line on his own with Alfredo Morelos being preferred by Michael Beale in the vast majority of games of late.

There were judgments made very early into the Rangers managers’ reign that the 29-year-old wouldn’t fit the playing style Beale would look to adopt, despite not being given an opportunity.

However, he was afforded his third start under the Rangers manager at Ibrox against Kilmarnock and put in a display that had Beale waxing lyrical in his post-match press conference.

“I thought he was our best player,” he beamed.

“I thought he came off and linked the play really well. You can see that we've been doing some fitness work with him in the background and he's the main thing I'll take away from today's game.”

Beale also gave mention to Colak in his press conference yesterday previewing Wednesday’s trip to Easter Road.

He said: “I'm sure that he cannot wait for the next two games because he's in a good place physically and obviously mentally after a good performance at the weekend.”

Beale’s words are interesting and explain why we haven’t seen the Croatian contribute a great deal up until Saturday’s game.

In what has been the story of Rangers’ disappointing season, Colak picked up a calf strain almost as soon as Beale had stepped foot back inside Ibrox and, up until the weekend, had looked like someone struggling for match sharpness.

Against Killie, Colak wasn’t the isolated figure we’ve witnessed on occasion. He was contributing to the overall play and linking up well with those around him.

He attempted 33 passes, 27 of which found their target. That's a substantial increase on his average of 15.45 passes per 90 heading into the game.

READ MORE: The two key Rangers reasons for optimism after Kilmarnock win

It’s clear, the role of the Rangers frontman is to contribute more than simply posing a goal threat in the penalty box. If Colak is capable of putting in performances like the one witnessed on Saturday then the manager will have a selection headache to negotiate moving forwards.

On one hand, we all know what Morelos can provide and the Colombian has enjoyed a knee-slide or two at Easter Road in the past.

But, as we witnessed in Leith earlier in the campaign, can he be trusted to spearhead the Rangers attack?

Kris Boyd certainly doesn’t think so. The former Ibrox striker has not been shy in expressing his opinion on Morelos’ form of late and has called for Colak to get the nod.

“I think when you look at the situation, Antonio Colak seems to be low maintenance, he'll come in and he'll do what he needs to do,” he told Sky Sports.

“You look at Colak, I don't think he is as good an all-round player as Alfredo Morelos, but he applies himself properly.

“Rangers, I think for me, well, they don't have a dilemma. If it's me, I think Morelos' time is up I've said that.

“I think Michael Beale is probably becoming frustrated with it as well, hence the reason why he didn't play yesterday.

“Colak is obviously under contract going forward so they are going to have to work with him at this moment in time. But you know looking at it right now, I can't see a future at Rangers for Alfredo Morelos.”

Rangers Review:

Boyd’s comments on Morelos’ contract situation are important to factor in when contemplating who should lead the line. With Rangers' only realistic chance of silverware being the Scottish Cup, should they persevere with someone who looks destined to depart the club in the summer or trust the only fit striker who represents the future, for the time being at least?

Of course, it’s not necessarily an argument levelled at Ryan Kent but his performances, in the main, have been more befitting of a Rangers player. What's more, there is no one capable of fulfilling the role Kent performs.

If we simply factor in goals then Colak gets the nod over Morelos any day of the week. The Croatian has netted 11 goals in 20 Premiership matches to El Bufalo’s nine in 24.

Yes, he has seen an upturn in form, for the most part, since Michael Beale took over from Giovanni van Bronckhorst, but there’s no denying Morelos doesn’t score enough domestically. 

It’s been a criticism levelled at the 26-year-old for many a season and looks highly unlikely to change any time soon.

In Colak, Rangers have that potent striker they’ve long since craved. The worry has been whether there is more to his game than just striking ability. He answered some of those questions on Saturday and in doing so, is deserving of a shot on Wednesday.