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BBC man Tom English blown away by Rangers ace Calvin Bassey in big Scottish Cup win v Celtic
Tom English was left gobsmacked at Calvin Bassey after Rangers smashed past Celtic at Hampden Park on Sunday afternoon.
The BBC journalist singled out the Nigerian international after he ran the length of the pitch to support Ryan Kent and then set up the winner in extra time.
It was the second 120-minute showdown for the Bears in three days, and it ended in the same result – pandemonium in the stands.
Writing in his latest column for the BBC this morning [18 April], English singled out one man for all of the praise.
“In the 114th minute of Sunday’s tumultuous Scottish Cup semi-final, Calvin Bassey – a centre-back who played every second of Rangers’ 120-minuter against Braga on Thursday night – metamorphosed into a left-winger and put in the cross that led to the winner against Celtic and sparked thunderous scenes at Hampden down the blue end of the stadium,” he wrote.
“Bassey is only 22 and entitled to be as fit as a flea, but what he did in that moment wasn’t just about superior conditioning, it was about desire and a rage for victory that typified Rangers’ effort on the day.
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“Bassey donning the mask of a winger in the run-up to Starfelt’s own goal was the decisive act. Remarkable.”
Delight.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst will be feeling on top of the world right now.
Most of the success has been masterminded by one small change, finding how to play Bassey and Borna Barisic in the same starting XI.
It worked wonders against Braga in the Europa League, and it happened again, this time with Celtic in our way.
Barisic has the best delivery in the entire squad on his day, and Bassey has the superior fitness than can see him embarrass the opposition with non-stop running.
Celtic had no answers despite them having a week break compared to the Bears, and it was a deserved win in the end.
We can’t stop there though, and with another Old Firm on the horizon, we need to win that one as well.
Do that, and the Scottish Premiership title race is well and truly on, but this is the level that was missing last time at Ibrox.
Bring it on.
In other Rangers news, One 25-year-old could now be deemed as surplus to requirements at Ibrox this season