Rangers captain Shankland targets January return after hamstring surgery

Rangers captain Lawrence Shankland says he will be back well before the end of the season after surgery on a torn hamstring. The 31-year-old forward is targeting a return early in 2027 and says his recovery is healing well. BBC Sport

Shankland tore the hamstring, the powerful muscle down the back of the thigh that strikers rely on to sprint and shoot. The damage needed an operation to repair. He said it was the first surgery of his career as a player. The early signs are good, with the captain reporting that everything is healing as it should.

He has already missed Rangers' past three games. When the injury was first confirmed in September, the expectation was up to four months on the sidelines, according to BBC Sport. Shankland is looking beyond that. He hopes to be back around January, with a lot of football still to be played.

That timeline would give Rangers their leader back for the second half of the campaign. It would also give Shankland time to build momentum again before the season's decisive months. He spoke with quiet confidence. No rush. No panic. Just a clear target.

Shankland joined Rangers from Hearts earlier this year, arriving as an established Scotland international. He plays as a forward, the player tasked first with scoring goals, and had four goals in 18 appearances for his country at the time of the move, according to BBC Sport. Shortly after signing, he said he did not feel too much pressure to establish himself at his new club.

Rangers have kept winning without him. Their run now stands at six victories in a row in all competitions. That has helped steady the mood while the captain rehabs. Football moves fast. A team on a run can afford to give an injured leader proper time.

What makes this stand out is the calm around it. Shankland did not sound like a player worried about his place. Rangers have not sounded like a club scrambling for cover. Six wins help. So does a captain talking about January as a starting point, not a finish line.

For fans, this means waiting with reason to hope. A hamstring tear that needs surgery is a serious setback for any 31-year-old who lives on sharp movements in the box. But Shankland's message was simple. He will be back for the business end, and there is still plenty to play for. That is welcome news for club and country as the season builds.