Huge boost: Rangers handed big injury lift that'll leave Van Bronckhorst relieved - opinion

Rangers have been handed a big injury relief over defender Leon Balogun…

On BT Sport’s commentary of the match on Thursday night, Ally McCoist noted that the Nigerian may have been carrying an injury and suggested that he had a “niggle” as he was substituted in the second half against Braga in their Europa League clash.

However, Gio van Bronckhorst was asked about that after the game and he confirmed that the player was taken off as part of a tactical switch.

The Rangers boss said: “No, we wanted the left side to be a little more solid with Calvin [Bassey] coming inside. Borna has played that role in the past and also for Croatia as a wing-back.”

This will surely leave Van Bronckhorst relieved, as he will surely be keen to keep the Nigeria international fit heading into the final weeks of the campaign.

Balogun was culpable for Braga’s winning goal as he misjudged his attempted clearance, but on the whole he has been impressive this season. One error does not make a player a liability and the centre-back has had plenty of good games to make up for that mistake.

In the Europa League this term, he has averaged a SofaScore rating of 7.06. He has made a whopping 4.3 tackles and interceptions per game, in comparison to Connor Goldson’s 2.4, and this shows that, more often than not, the 33-year-old offers a lot of quality at the back.

The ex-Wigan defender has also caught the eye with his strong showings in the Premiership. He has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.98 across 18 top-flight outings, making 3.1 tackles and interceptions per match and winning 63% of his overall duels.

This shows that he has been able to dominate the opposition in most of his matches in the Scottish top flight, which is why having him available will