Why Rangers will breathe sigh of relief after Olwethu Makhanya latest with South Africa

Rangers will have been hoping for Olwethu Makhanya to have a successful international break with South Africa.

The centre-back was called up to Bafana Bafana's squad and made his competitive debut for his country against Guinea.

The 22-year-old's call-up came after impressing early on at Ibrox, following his £3million move to the Bears in the summer.

Makhanya has formed a strong partnership with Emmanuel Fernandez already, and looks to be a key part of Derek McInnes' defence.

The defender picked up his first clean sheet for his nation with a 5-0 win over Eritrea last week, as he featured once again in a 1-0 win over Egypt on Sunday.

But what happened against Egypt is perhaps the best news possible for Rangers.

Rangers to breathe sigh of relief after latest Olwethu Makhanya international scenes

Makhanya has helped South Africa to top spot in Group D of the Africa Cup of Nations Qualifications, following wins against Guinea and Eritrea.

The win over Egypt was a friendly, as the former Philadelphia Union defender will now return to Auchenhowie.

He featured against Egypt, but only played 13 minutes after coming off the bench in the second half.

Though Makhanya picked up a yellow card, it appears that he will be returning to Rangers unscathed and fit to play once club football resumes.

There is always a risk that players can get injured while away on duty, but if Makhanya were to be benched in any of South Africa's three games, their last matchup was the most ideal one from the Gers' perspective.

But what about his most important teammate?

What about Emmanuel Fernandez?

All Rangers could have asked for was for Makhanya to have a successful break with South Africa and come back to Ibrox injury-free.

Things appear to have gone perfectly for the centre-back.

However, that may not be the case with Fernandez.

The 24-year-old was given the call-up to Nigeria's squad for their Africa Cup of Nations Qualification games, but has been on the bench for both of his nation's matches.

There is a clear need for Nigeria to switch up their defence after suffering a 3-0 loss against Guinea-Bissau, and a friendly against Russia on Tuesday gives them a chance to do that

There's every chance that Fernandez starts, which is not ideal considering Rangers also have a game against Kilmarnock later on this week.