Dujon Sterling has confirmed he missed Rangers' recent trip to Falkirk because medical specialists have advised him not to play on artificial pitches.
The Rangers defender has been a regular at right-back this season and says he has missed just one game, the 2-1 win away to Falkirk, with the surface behind his absence.
Sterling was asked directly whether he simply cannot play on artificial pitches following his Achilles injury.
“Yes, literally on the 3G, or 4G, Astro. Just stay away from it. You're at higher risk of redoing the Achilles if you play on it,” he revealed.
Sterling later reinforced that point when discussing his improved fitness this season, revealing that the fixture at the Falkirk stadoim is the only match he has missed.
“Then obviously, doing the Achilles, I wasn't able to play that twice a week. Whereas now, I've basically played every game this season, so I'm in a good place.
“I've missed only one game, and that was just because of the pitch. That's from the specialists that said, for the Achillies, don't play on that pitch.”
Greg Stewart predicts Sterling absence
The comments provide context to Sterling's absence from Rangers' trip to Falkirk and also link directly to comments made by Greg Stewart before the fixture.
Stewart had identified the artificial surface as a potential issue for Sterling when discussing the match before kick-off.
“Astro turf as well, it always comes into play. So, it'll be interesting to see how the new boys, that are not used to it, take to it," he said before the match last week.
“I don't think Sterling will play well because of that.”
Sterling confirms Rangers' decision
Sterling has now made clear that the issue was not simply a question of whether he would perform well on the surface.
He was advised by specialists to avoid 3G, 4G and Astro pitches because of the increased risk of suffering another Achilles injury.
The defender's return to consistent football has been one of the early positives of the new campaign, with Sterling explaining that playing regularly in his preferred right-back position has helped him build rhythm, after the departure of long-serving captain James Tavernier.
“I think there's a lot of things that go with that. One, not playing in a different position every game,” he explained.
“While I've been playing right back since the start of the season, you can see that obviously you get rhythm.
“Your body's just used to playing in that one position. That's where ideally I wanted to play since I've been here.
“But obviously, you've had Tav, me, so we've always had to be fighting for competition.”
Sterling on injury record
Sterling also opened up on the difficulties he experienced following previous injuries, admitting he had sometimes returned before being fully fit because of the demands placed on Rangers' squad.
“Yeah, I think that's also from just even when I was getting injured, they were rushing me back from the injury to obviously play in the games,” he revealed.
“Every game is an important game, so I might not be 100 percent, but I'm coming back to play even if I'm at 50. That's probably why I was breaking down again.
“Whereas now, we identified the problems over the summer, and now you can see that I'm in a good place.”
Sterling's latest comments therefore clarify the reason for his Falkirk absence, with the Rangers defender putting it down specifically to medical advice surrounding his previous Achilles injury rather than a selection decision.
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