Jack Butland of Rangers hospitalised after nasty-looking leg injury leading to significant internal bleeding.
Jack Butland spent Tuesday night in hospital after what he has described as “significant” internal bleeding in a leg.
Butland left hospital on New Year’s Day. A statement from his club said: “Rangers can confirm goalkeeper Jack Butland will miss tomorrow’s Old Firm match with Celtic. The goalkeeper suffered an internal bleed in his leg which required hospital treatment but he has since been released and is recovering. Everyone at Rangers wishes Jack a speedy recovery.” No timescale is being placed on Butland’s return.
The 31-year-old, virtually an ever-present since joining Rangers in the summer of 2023, published his own bulletin on social media. It said: “I really appreciate the messages, but it’s important the information is correct. I’ve suffered a significant bleed to my leg that needed hospital attention, thankfully that’s now under control and will lead to a full recovery hopefully sooner rather than later.
“Needless to say it’s come at an awful time and I was fully focused on helping us as a club. The most important thing now is supporting the lads and focusing on getting fit as soon as possible.”
Butland’s replacement against Celtic will be Liam Kelly, who was acquired from Motherwell in the summer. Given that James Tavernier, the Rangers’ regular captain, is also sidelined, it is unclear who will captain the team during the derby. However, Butland would have filled in.
Due to the absence of key centre-back John Souttar and the serious doubts surrounding another defender, Leon Balogun, Philippe Clement faces numerous selection issues. Rangers are 14 points behind Celtic in Scotland’s top division.