Rangers debutant, Leon Balogun, earned rave reviews for his performance against Aberdeen in which he played a key role in stopping the opposition attack from getting a single shot on target.
Speaking to Football Insider, former Premier League striker, Noel Whelan, was hugely impressed with the Nigerian international’s display.
So what has Whelan said?
When asked to reflect on the 32-year old’s first appearance for the Light Blues, he said:
“He was fantastic.
“Some people need a bit of time to adapt but he has come straight in and performed.
“Straight into a very good side as well but sometimes players prefer to be shoved in at the deep end. He did not have that much time to think about it.
“A superb performance but we thought he would give Rangers that anyway. I can only see him going from strength to strength now. Steven Gerrard would not have brought him in if he didn’t believe he would improve them.
“Hopefully this season there is a title race that goes long beyond Christmas.”
So is Whelan correct?
Absolutely, Balogun was in the fortunate position to have played a series of games for Wigan Athletic before he signed for Steven Gerrard’s side and – if anything – he is several weeks ahead of the rest of the squad in terms of preparation.
Who would you start as first choice centre-half pairing?
Goldson and Helander
Goldson and Balogun
Helander and Balogun
It shouldn’t have been unexpected, with 31 caps for his country to his name and with three appearances at the last World Cup, the former Brighton and Hove Albion centre-half is technically the club’s most experienced defender.
Initially tipped to be a back-up, Balogun’s performance at Pittodrie matched physicality with ability on the ball, this could see him play more games than had been previously thought, a genuine challenger to both Connor Goldson and Filip Hleander for a starting berth in the first XI and improving the squad strength that the Gers gaffer craves.