Soccer
Super Eagles and Rangers defender, Leon Aderemi Balogun, has berated his side’s performance in their 2-1 loss to Motherwell, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 36-year-old veteran centre-back recently returned from a knee injury sustained in Rangers’ 2-1 loss to Manchester United in the UEFA Europa League in January.
Balogun returned to action for Rangers today, coming on in the second half at Ibrox, replacing Robin Propper at half time.
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The Gers were two goals down when the former Queens Park Rangers man entered the fray. Barry Ferguson’s side pulled a goal back via Cyriel Dessers in the 54th minute but were unable to level the scores, losing their third game from their last five.
️ Leon Balogun spoke to @RangersTV after today’s match against Motherwell. pic.twitter.com/VWwzXqBneu
— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) March 1, 2025
“The dressing room is probably as flat as our first half was. That’s where the whole truth in the game lies, I think. If we start a game of football like that at Ibrox, again, after Wednesday night [vs Kilmarnock] where I thought the team showed great character, I think it’s only right you get a certain reaction from the crowd.
“There’s a lot of disappointment, and I don’t think I have to say it, it’s quite obvious. If you believe in this club and you’ve been let down many times. After a performance like that, there are sounds you hear, and you then know you’re far off it,” the Germany-born Nigerian said in an interview with the club’s official website.
“We go into every game with targets and with a plan, but I think we just started way too slow; we just had no urgency, no intensity in the way we play. Individual mistakes come into play as well, but how we respond to them has been a theme all through the season.
“Overall, we lack consistency in our performances. We consistently make the same mistakes. We need to raise our standards massively, and that’s pretty much it. It hurts that we’re so far from consistency. There’s not too much to say. We have to correct it. We’ve said we have to bounce back, but how many times do we have to say it?” an angry Balogun concluded.
Rangers are now 16 points below Celtic on the SPFL table. Although Ferguson’s side are in second place, their chances of challenging for the league title this term is non-existent.
Balogun is eyeing a return to Eric Chelle’s Super Eagles in the next International break ahead of Nigeria’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. With Semi Ajayi suffering another hamstring tear while on club duty for West Brom, Balogun could get his much-anticipated return.
“It’s not that I’ve not accepted an invitation ever. Unfortunately, right before the World Cup break, I suffered an injury that was supposed to last a few weeks but didn’t go the way it was supposed to. I just couldn’t come I was not fit yet and after I got fit, then I relapsed but since then I haven’t had a lengthy injury spell.
“I have always been available. I’ve never said that I retired from international football, and I think the people who need to know are aware that I’m still very much willing and ambitious to represent the national team,” the Germany-born defender said as previously reported by Soccernet.ng.
Nigeria will travel to face Rwanda on the 19th of March before welcoming Zimbabwe to the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium on the 22nd of March.
Adefolahan Guerreiro
Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria.
With a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience.
He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.
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