“I had a difficult period, but the manager has shown me some trust,” said Leon Balogun

“I had a difficult period, but the manager has shown me some trust,” said Leon Balogun

“It says a lot that someone asked me if I’d fought with a bear.”

When questioned about Rangers’ hard-fought 1-0 victory at Tynecastle on Wednesday night,

Leon Balogun’s response summed up the 35-year-old’s entire impact since

Philippe Clement brought him back to the team.

The Nigerian international had only played one of the eight available

ninety minutes in the Scottish Premiership before to the Belgian’s arrival at the club.

Clement did not play in the first two league games he took over,

but he has subsequently participated in all five.

Balogun is undoubtedly a key member of the manager’s preferred center-back duo,

which appears to be Connor Goldson and him.

“I have had a difficult period being out of the game,

so I am truly appreciative and it means a lot.

Thinking back on the midweek victory, he stated,

“Like you said, it seems to be a bit of trust at least and I hope I can pay it back.”

“I have worked as a professional for 16 years,

so when a new manager comes on board, things don’t always go as planned.”

Although I would have preferred a totally different outcome, I am glad it went that way.

“I think the boys do a great job portraying Clement;

I’m sure you’ve had encounters so you get an idea of his persona.

He’s been a breath of fresh air in his ways.”

After being released by the team in the summer of 2022,

the defender re-signed in the summer.

That summer, he followed Beale to QPR and reconnected with him after

Leon King sustained a preseason injury that was thought to

be much more serious than it turned out to be.

From the outside, the transfer looked like a smart move

if it was assumed that Balogun would cover in the defence,

and Beale’s decision to leave him out of the European team supports that belief.

But Clement has a different perspective.

He admires the Nigerian international’s strength and domination in duels,

and Rangers have only let just one goal in the five league games that Belogun has started beside Goldson.

Speaking about his team’s recent performance, Balogun said,

“I think what you can see is momentum.”

“Believing that everything will go our way is naive.

I can see that nobody is taking anything for granted or assuming that it will work itself out in the dressing room.

We must continue to develop;

even the manner in which we recovered from our losses in

the previous two games and proceeded to play the games demonstrates the character we are currently forming.

The fact that Balogun is unable to play away against Real Betis on Thursday is actually a godsend.

If he couldn’t regularly play two games a week during his initial stint at the club,

then it stands to reason that his chances of doing so have decreased in the months and years that have passed.

Especially in light of the seriousness of the injury problems the team has faced recently,

it doesn’t seem like luck is on their side.

The defender is a team player who has a greater purpose than himself,

and he returned to watch the club last season from the stands.

Nevertheless, Balogun is still a driven professional who wishes to play as often as possible.

You would think Balogun wouldn’t experience the same outcome

when Clement chooses his European team during the winter break,

whether it’s for the Conference League or Europa League knockout stages.

When questioned about missing out on the group stage selection, he responded,

“I came back looking forward to these European nights at Ibrox.”

“The choice was made weeks ago; at this point,

my role is to support the team as best I can from the stands.”

Tom Lawrence will be evaluated for a muscle ailment

that forced him off the field early at Tynecastle,

Clement announced after the game on Wednesday.

The 29-year-old Lawrence has battled injuries constantly since joining the team in the summer.

Towards the end of Beale’s stint, he appeared to have past his injury problems, but in late September,

he was forced out against Real Betis.

When asked what he thought, a disgruntled Clement replied,

“It’s difficult for me right now because I have never had it in a team that I worked with,

that so many players fall out injured.”

The drawback is that we have to evaluate that tomorrow in order to make a determination.

Changing players throughout the first half is not a good idea.

Borna was lost before to this match.

Additionally, because we are playing games one after the other,

we don’t have the time to train them and strengthen them.

Up until January, we need to put in a lot of hard work,

solve puzzles every time to determine the best 11 for that game, and make the necessary adjustments.

“[Barisic] is out for an unknown amount of time due to a minor muscle issue.”

Tom also has a muscle issue; we’ll see how serious it is.

The manager has also urged his team to simplify their own lives after a nervous end in

the capital was caused by a number of squandered opportunities.

Danilo, who hasn’t scored since his first goal against Sparta Prague over a month ago today,

missed two chances to increase his team’s lead,

and Abdallah Sima had a late chance to add his second.

“That’s still a working point, but we created a lot of opportunities.”

More clinical behaviour is required,” he stated.

“We must score the second goal and, if possible, end the game.

Had it not been for Hearts’ ability to stay in the game and their constant pursuit of the opportunity that fell at someone’s feet,

the game’s conclusion might have been drastically different.

We had five excellent opportunities, but in my opinion,

we should have scored at least three goals given our strengths. hence additional tasks to complete.

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