Abdallah Sima breaks Rangers injury silence with defiant pledge as AFCON dream comes to an end

Rangers winger Abdallah Sima has vowed to come back stronger after his African Cup of Nations campaign with Senegal was ended through injury.

The Senegal cap has enjoyed an impressive campaign on loan at Ibrox from Brighton - having managed to become the joint-top scorer so far this season for the Scottish Premiership side. That form earned him a call up to the tournament in the Ivory Coast but he had failed to play a minute of group stage football against Cameroon and Gambia - with the Senegalese Football Federation revealing he would return to Rangers after a thigh injury sparked concerns over a "long period of unavailability."

Following the statement from the governing body, Sima has now taken to social media to express his disappointment at being unable to represent his country at the tournament. He wrote on Instagram: "It's with a lot of sadness that I tell you I won't be able to continue the competition.

"But my heart and strength will remain with this group who I hope will go after the trophy for our beautiful country because they deserve it. Thank you all for your many messages, I'm determined to come back even stronger."

Following the Scottish Cup victory over Dumbarton, Philippe Clement would not be drawn on the fitness of the attacker as he awaited an update from his medical team following his AFCON return. He said: "It is always dangerous to hear those things when they happen when they are not here.

"I always like to hear my medical staff and what they think about things so Abda is going to come back as fast as possible. I have been in contact with him already. He is going to come back as fast as possible to make a good assessment and to see how long he will be out."