ALTHOUGH he was brought to the club by Steven Gerrard, it was fair to suggest that Calvin Bassey was at a crossroads in his Rangers career in those months preceding Gerrard’s departure to Aston Villa.
Bassey had never quite shown the required creative output when deputising for Borna Barisic, often lacking the guile to unlock defences with a swipe of his left boot in the same way the Croatian had mastered in recent seasons.
However, an injury crisis at the heart of the Rangers defence when Giovanni van Bronckhorst was appointed as Gerrard’s successor threw Bassey into the mix in a must-win Europa League group stage tie with Sparta Prague. The Nigeria international thrived in the circumstances and, with both Leon Balogun and Filip Helander continuing to struggle with injuries, Bassey has become a firm favourite of van Bronckhorst’s.
Indeed, prior to Gerrard’s exit the former Leicester academy graduate started seven out of a possible 13 league games. Since van Bronckhorst took the reins in late November, Bassey has played every single minute available.
It has been in European ties, specifically the memorable two-legged victory over Borussia Dortmund, where Bassey’s undoubted qualities have come to the fore.
Many were taken aback by Rangers’ aggressive approach off-the-ball in Germany, but it was underpinned by the selection of Bassey in central defence alongside the experienced Connor Goldson.
The Nigerian’s relative inexperience at the heart of defence against top-level European opposition could have been his undoing, but his athletic qualities allowed the Light Blues to sustain their high press.
As highlighted in the image below, Rangers have as many as five players in Borussia Dortmund’s defensive third attempting to recover possession.
Dortmund are able to play around the Rangers pressure to left-back Raphael Guerreiro, which opens up a passing lane through the heart of the Gers backline.
With Rangers holding a high defensive line to limit the space behind the first line of pressure, Guerreiro is able to slide a ball through the defence to the onrushing Jude Bellingham.
The midfielder then has a one-on-one opportunity with Allan McGregor. However, Bassey uses his acceleration to recover the ground quickly and swipe the ball away from Bellingham to alleviate the danger for Rangers.
Given these European ties tend to be more athletic and physical in nature, Bassey has stood out with his ability to hold his own against the very elite.
Equally, however, Bassey has shown an ability to leverage his physical qualities with defensive anticipation.
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Rangers are able to turn defence into attack in the blink of an eye due to the Nigerian’s quick-thinking, as we also witnessed in the first half at the Westfalenstadion.
As Manuel Akanji steps out with the ball he spots Marco Reus in space between the Rangers midfield and defensive lines.
As he fires his pass into the German, however, Bassey is sharp to spot the opportunity to nip in front and quell the danger for Rangers.
In doing so, he is able to help Rangers exploit the space left by Akanji’s forward momentum, with Ryan Kent’s pass from Joe Aribo’s lay-off only slightly overhit when he released Alfredo Morelos in behind.
The Nigerian’s brute strength was also on display in an attacking sense in the second leg against Borussia Dortmund.
Bassey supplied James Tavernier for Rangers’ second of the evening by leveraging his physical strength to wriggle out of a 1v2 situation, as seen below.
Marius Wolf is able to stall Bassey’s progress when he receives possession.
With Mahmoud Dahoud shuttling across to cover, Bassey is able to use his strength to protect the ball and create separation for the cross.
In the meantime, James Tavernier is able to get around the back to deliver the finish from the Nigerian’s cross.
The main criticism of Barisic over the years is that, although his final ball, when presented with space, is usually devastating, he can often struggle to create space on his own.
The Croatian has improved in one-on-one situations since his arrival in Glasgow, but Bassey’s physicality means he can create distance between himself and defenders to open up space.
Similarly, Bassey’s aggression facilitates greater domination of the left-hand side in the defensive phase.
In the below comparison with Barisic – which includes three 90 minutes played at left-back in 2022 for each player – it is noticeable how Bassey engages higher up the pitch defensively (bottom).
Of course, the various circumstances within games will influence these events maps, but Bassey is able to engage in more advanced areas largely because he is more athletic in nature.
As illustrated in a moment from the 5-0 win over Hearts, Bassey’s athleticism is able to spring Rangers forward seconds after Hearts receive possession in Rangers’ half.
The Hearts central defender clips the ball forwards towards Josh Ginnelly in space.
As the Hearts winger controls with his chest, Bassey is able to exploit his athleticism to apply pressure on Ginnelly while he’s steadying himself.
Given his acceleration from a standing start, Bassey is able to nip the ball away from the Hearts winger.
The Nigerian then drives into space with the ball to spring Rangers forward on the counter-attack.
In essence, Bassey is a thoroughly modern footballer, with a skillset compatible with the growing speed and athleticism of the game.
Planked in a Rangers team that is creaking with ageing players in various positions, Bassey is a standout in the way he leverages his physicality in both attacking and defensive situations.
A future as a left-sided central defender in a back three could be the most profitable but, in the short term, Bassey offers Rangers huge athleticism in a number of key positions. At 22, he is only going to get better.
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