Rangers defender Leon Balogun has leapt to the defence of Nigeria star Alex Iwobi following the AFCON Final defeat to Ivory Coast.
Veteran Rangers centre-back Leon Balogun, 35, was not part of the Nigeria squad which was eventually beaten 2-1 by their West African rivals in Abidjan this week.
But that didn’t stop Leon leaping to the defence of his Super Eagles teammate as Everton winger Alex Iwobi come under heavy fire on social media platform X.
Leon Balogun defends Nigeria star Alex Iwobi
The nephew of legendary Nigerian midfielder Jay-Jay Okocha has been made something of a scapegoat for the country’s failure to lift a fourth AFCON trophy.
As a result of the negative reaction to his performance, Iwobi has deleted all images from his official Instagram account.
The situation has even gotten so bad that the ex-Arsenal attacker has claimed he has come off of social media, with the Nigerian sports minister John Eno clipped reassuring Iwobi of the country’s support.
Leon Balogun was responding to a frustrated supporter who openly criticised the abuse aimed at Alex Iwobi.
“This is the same player you expect to give his all and win- for you and the whole nation!” Balogun said on X. “And he did! Yet you neither acknowledge his efforts nor the fact that HE just lost a final with the team. If this is your support then it’s not needed – respectfully!”
Rangers links to AFCON Final
As Leon Balogun leaps to the defence of Alex Iwobi, the big defender would’ve been gutted to see Nigeria lose out to the Ivory Coast in the AFCON Final.
Not least because two former Rangers teammates in Calvin Bassey and Joe Aribo played in the 2-1 Final defeat.
New Rangers signing Mohamed Diomande also hilariously rubbed the defeat in at Ibrox training, the Ivorian midfielder showing up wearing an Ivory Coast jersey.
The moment was captured by Leon Balogun on social media, with the defender inadvertently confirming his return from injury in the process.
Former Rangers midfielder Matt Crooks has completed a ‘significant’ move to Major League Soccer side Real Salt Lake nearly seven years since leaving Ibrox.
Rangers’ transfer policy under Mark Warburton was questionable to say the least.
The influx of veteran players such as Clint Hill, Philippe Senderos, Niko Kranjcar and Joey Barton didn’t exactly reap rewards.
Rangers also looked to land younger talents from England with Jordan Rossiter and Joe Dodoo arriving with real excitement but sadly falling flat at Ibrox.
Raiding Accrington Stanley for two players left some fans underwhelmed and whilst Josh Windass turned out to be a recent player, Matt Crooks endured a forgettable time at Ibrox.
Former Rangers talent Matt Crooks earns MLS move
Crooks penned a pre-contract agreement with Rangers alongside Windass having showed huge promise at Accrington.
The 6ft 4in midfielder showed an ability to score goals from midfield and Rangers snapped him up in the belief that he could shine under Warburton.
That didn’t happen; Crooks played just three times for Rangers before being loaned to Scunthorpe United and then sold to Northampton Town
Crooks started to get back on track with the Cobblers, hitting 10 goals in 57 games to earn himself a Championship move, smashing 21 goals in 97 games for Rotherham United.
Middlesbrough coughed up £1.1million to sign Crooks in 2021, just four years after Rangers let him go for a paltry £100,000.
Crooks has continued to find the net for Boro, but has now decided to make a big move at the age of 30.
Major League Soccer side Real Salt Lake have confirmed the signing of Crooks, handing him a deal through the 2026 MLS campaign.
Crooks is seen as a player who can help Real Salt Lake in the MLS playoff pursuit moving forward and reports from the North East suggest that Boro will receive a ‘significant’ fee.
Crooks has really bounced back from his difficult spell at Rangers and his big move to the United States will now see him rub shoulders with the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez; not bad for a player Rangers barely even used.
Here, we list all Philippe Clement Rangers signings made since the Belgian’s first transfer window at Ibrox in January 2024.
Philippe Clement has been a revelation for Rangers ever since stepping onto the hotseat vacated by Michael Beale, who majorly flopped as Ibrox boss.
Clement joined in October after the international break and his impact on a flailing group of players was almost instantaneous. Beale’s recruitment in the summer appeared to be shoddy but really, he just couldn’t get the best out of them.
Most of the them are in fact good players and Clement has been astute enough as a manager to discover their truest individual potential. But the Belgian was keen to mark his own stamp on the first-team squad.
So he and director of football Nils Koppen worked together across the January transfer window by signing three new players to aid in Rangers’ hunt for three more major trophies after winning the Viaplay Cup in December.
