Former Rangers defender Marvin Andrews has tipped Calvin Bassey for greatness if he stays clear of serious injuries in the new campaign.
The 22-year-old Nigeria international has established himself as a regular for the Gers under manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst, putting up impressive performances in the Scottish Premiership, Scottish Cup, and Europa League final.
His performances have already attracted interest from a number of top European clubs and the Super Eagle has been linked with big-money moves away from Ibrox.
According to the 46-year-old Andrews, who played for Rangers between 2004 and 2006 and managed 53 appearances scoring seven goals, Bassey’s star will rise even more if he can avoid injuries.
“It is very important, the defence, big Connor [Goldson] has been tremendous, Calvin Bassey is strong, athletic. He’s only 22 as well,” Andrews said as quoted by Glasgow Live Sport.
“If he can avoid any serious injuries then he can go on to have a very big future ahead of him. There’s a bit of interest but you were going to get that. They reached a European final and made their mark.”
Under Van Bronckhorst, who was appointed to succeed Steven Gerrard, Bassey started to see game time at Ibrox and he was instrumental for the team as they reached the Scottish Cup final where they defeated Hearts 2-0 at Hampden Park.
The Super Eagle also pulled a stand-out display in the final of the Europa League where Rangers came up against Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville but lost 5-4 on penalties after 1-1 draw in normal and extra-time.
Bassey was rated the best player on the pitch alongside his Nigerian compatriot Joe Aribo after the final. According to Uefa, Bassey picked the award with eight points, while Aribo and goalkeeper Allan McGregor were rated at 7.5.
Though Rangers missed out on defending the top-fight title after losing it to Celtic, Bassey managed 29 matches throughout the campaign. He was also part of the Nigeria squad that took part in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Sierra Leone and Sao Tome and Principe.
He started and was booked in their Group A opener against Leone Stars which the Super Eagles won 2-1 and was also in action for 71 minutes as he paved way for Leon Balogun in the 10-0 thrashing of Sao Tome in their second game.
