Celtic v Rangers Premier Sports Cup Leon Balogun of Rangers down as referee John Beaton calls for medical staff during the Premier Sports Scottish League Cup Final between Celtic and Rangers at Hampden Park, Glasgow UK Newspapers OUT Copyright: xJamiexJohnstonx FIL-21100-0106. [Photo Credit/ Imago].
Rangers head coach, Philippe Clement, has revealed his side will be less competitive without Super Eagles defender, Leon Balogun, when they play against Celtic tomorrow, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 36-year-old missed the Gers clash against Motherwell, and his absence was evident as they were two goals down by the 35th minute. While Hamza Igamane came on in the second half to score a brace for Rangers, it still felt like two points dropped for Philippe Clement’s side.
With the Old Firm Derby on the cusp, the Belgian gaffer is in despair as some of his bonafide starters will be out with an injury. However, he did reveal the Nigerian international is close to returning to full fitness.
“There is a small chance that Leon Balogun may return and he did some work today. We have lost Tav, as he got an injury against Motherwell. He has had a scan and he has damage and he will be out for a few weeks.
It is a blow, every injury is, we have had a few in the last few weeks, with Nana Kasanwirjo, with John Souttar, Leon Balogun and before that Ridvan. It is about finding solutions and we have to do that.
You can’t play on one leg, so we will see with Leon. Sometimes you have to take risks in this business, but we can’t take a crazy risk and potentially have the player out for months. We will see if he is ready or not.
“You have to adapt to the situation, sometimes you get positive surprises. Everyone who is fit has to give their all to try to win the game. They went full out in the cup final but the circumstances didn’t fall for us that day. We are going full on to try to get the victory,” the Rangers boss said in quotes revealed by the club’s official website.
Rangers are in no position to challenge for the league title this season as they’re currently 14 points behind Celtic. Nonetheless, a victory against Brendan Rodgers’ team tomorrow could help the Ibrox faithfuls reduce the deficit.
This post was last modified on January 1, 2025 4:03 pm
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