Joe Aribo's 70-game Rangers season wows Michael Beale ally as he signs off as world's most used top level footballer

Joe Aribo's season finally finished on Monday when he didn’t get off the bench as Nigeria smashed Sao Tome and Principe 10-0 in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

But the 70 games he clocked up for Rangers and his country made the midfielder the planet’s most used top-level footballer.

Now one of the world’s foremost sports performance consultants has expressed concern Aribo could face mental and physical exhaustion if he faces another campaign with such a heavy workload.

Florida-based Allistair McCaw, a close friend of former Ibrox first-team coach Michael Beale, spent three days at the Rangers Training Centre working with players and staff when Steven Gerrard was manager.

And he believes Aribo will have to be managed very carefully in the months ahead.

The former Charlton star turned out for Rangers 57 times, including in 17 of the club’s 19 Europa League appearances, which culminated in him scoring against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Seville showpiece.

He also clocked up 13 outings for his country, including at the Africa Cup of Nations in January.

His excellent early-season form dipped upon his return from Algeria before picking up again as the campaign hurtled towards its conclusion.

South African-born McCaw – who works with some of the world’s leading teams including Paris St-Germain as well as top individual sports stars – wasn’t surprised to learn that, believing travelling can take its toll as much as physical activity.

On hearing Aribo had completed 70 games in a season – his tally was matched on Monday by Guatemalan international Stheven Robles but the Rangers and Nigeria player spent more overall minutes on the pitch – McCaw said: “Wow, that’s a lot of games.

“If my maths is correct, that’s one game