Former Scotland midfielder Michael Stewart has praised Glasgow Rangers’ Nigerian defender Calvin Bassey and has urged the club to keep him for as long as they can.
Bassey, who is the subject of transfer interest from the Premier League, was solid for the Gers in their UEFA Europa League final loss to Eintracht Frankfurt. Despite his only mistake in the game leading to Frankfurt’s equaliser, Bassey did not put a foot wrong in the game.
This has typified his season for the Ibrox side and he has slowly displaced his senior national teammate, Leon Balogun, at the heart of the club’s defence despite originally being a left-back. Stewart, who analysed the game on his Twitter account after Frankfurt lifted the trophy, reserved special praise for Bassey while calling on the authority figures at the club to keep him beyond the summer.
His solitary tweet on Bassey read: “Calvin Bassey is absolutely unbelievable. Can’t quite believe how good he has been in the second half of the season. They must do everything to keep a hold of him. If players must be sold then they can’t let him be one of them. Tremendous player.”
Several Scottish fans agreed with Stewart, with one fan who admitted to cheering on Frankfurt against Rangers due to local rivalries admitting that Bassey was the best player on the night. The same fan even called Bassey the best player in the league since Kieran Tierney, who left for Arsenal in 2020.
Leicester want Ademola Lookman on a permanent deal
Elsewhere, another new Super Eagle, Ademola Lookman, has impressed enough to warrant a Premier League stay with Leicester City beyond his expiring loan spell, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.
Lookman should be returning to Red Bull Leipzig in the summer after a solid spell at the King Power Stadium, but the club wants to sign him permanently. Their decision has been reached a long time ago, but they held off on taking any actions as they had a serious stretch of matches to get through and did not want any distractions to their players.
They have now expressed renewed interest in the Nigerian and are willing to meet Leipzig’s asking price for him without issues. Leipzig want €16.5 million for Lookman, who they signed from Everton for €18 million in 2019. The Leicester loan is his second loan spell since signing for Die Roten Bullen after Fulham had paid a €2 million loan fee to secure his services for the 2020/21 season.
Leicester are now willing to pay what Leipzig wants, which will help the German club recoup their investment in the player.
This article was most recently revised and updated 1 year ago
