Rangers summer signing played 90 minutes for his country last night, gets 7.5/10 for his display

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Glasgow Rangers defender Leon Balogun is currently away from Ibrox on international duty but he is continuing to show the class that saw the Gers snap him up this summer.

With Nikola Katic likely to be sidelined for most of the 2020-21 season, Rangers boss Steven Gerrard brought the experienced free agent to Ibrox on a one-year deal.

To date, Balogun has made five appearances for the Gers, with injury ruling him out of four games, while he remained on the bench for the other four matches.

The 32-year-old looked comfortable on his first start back for Rangers, against Ross County last time out, putting in a solid display in a 2-0 win at Ibrox.

Balogun was named in Nigeria’s starting XI against Algeria on Friday night and, although the Super Eagles were beaten 1-0, the Gers man was praised for his performance.

“Balogun was a more assured centre-back than his partner (William) Troost-Ekong,” wrote Allnigeriasoccer.com.

“He defended well and even made carried the ball forward a few times. 7.5/10.”

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Balogun’s CV is impressive, having clocked up a healthy amount of Bundesliga appearances, plus time in England’s top two divisions and, with Nigeria, appearances in the World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations.

It’s not taken him long to earn plaudits at Rangers and, although he was sidelined through injury for a spell, is now looking back to his solid best.

Even if he doesn’t start every game, he’ll still be crucial in a hugely important season where the Gers will need to last the distance and make the squad depth count.