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Calvin Bassey is gradually becoming Glasgow Rangers lynchpin and he proved that again on Sunday in the semifinal of the Scottish Cup against perennial rivals, Celtic, Megasportsarena.com reports.
With the game at 1-1, the Nigerian international swung Hampden Park to life in the 114th minute of the tumultuous Scottish Cup semi-final and his dexterous move gave Gers a ticket to the final next month.
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.
Rangers had to overcome an immense 120 minute showing over Braga to reach the Europa League semi-finals and done so again to overcome Celtic at Hampden.
Calvin Bassey played all 240 minutes in the space of three days and over the course of these two matches showed an expert maturity way beyond his years.
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.
It was about going toe-to-toe with an opponent that was unbeaten in 39 domestic games before this one, about downing a side that hadn’t lost to a Scottish opponent in almost seven months, about doing whatever needed to be done to overcome a rival that had visited some gloomy days on Rangers already this year.
Bassey’s compatriots, Joe Aribo and Leon Balogun we’re also involved in the derby win. Aribo played 75 minutes of the match while Leon Balogun was sent onto the pitch in extra time (109th minute) to strengthen the defence, which he perfectly did.
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