Rangers centre-back Nikola Katic could be back on the pitch within six months, according to the player’s agent.

The Light Blues revealed at the weekend that the Croatian had suffered a serious knee injury, and when asked to clarify how long the defender will be out for, his representative Ives Cakarun replied:

“His cruciate ligament is damaged but Niko is a brave guy and he will be back stronger than he is now. We think in six months he will be able to play games.”

An anterior cruciate ligament can take up to a year to recover from depending on the severity of the damage and supporters will be hoping Cakarun’s estimate is accurate.

If all goes to plan, we could see Katic back on the training pitch sometime early in the New Year, but it must be pointed out that it can take a while to recover full fitness after going through rehabilitation.

With the Gers now without one of their four senior centre-backs for at least the first half of next season, manager Steven Gerrard will have to decide whether he needs to sign a replacement this summer.