RANGERS CONFIDENTIAL: The star who’s set to make club a small fortune… thanks to a little sprinkling of the Barry Ferguson magic

You have to wonder what former Rangers manager Philippe Clement makes of the hype now engulfing their Belgian midfielder Nicolas Raskin.

The 24-year-old has taken his game to a whole new level in recent weeks, helping Rangers to knock Fenerbahce out of the Europa League, bringing down Celtic with a man-of-the-match performance and then replicating that form for his country.

Not only was he called up to Belgium’s squad for the first time, he was handed his first start and played so well in the second leg of their Nations League victory against Ukraine that he was given a standing ovation by the crowd and hero-worshipped by the country’s media.

The clamour now is for him to keep his place ahead of Aston Villa pair Amadou Onana and Youri Tielemans, who have already been the subject of transfers worth £50m and £32m respectively.

If that is any guide, Raskin suddenly has the potential to make Rangers a small fortune.

In fairness, Clement did promise us that his squad would mature. 

Raskin excelled on his first start for Belgium and was given a standing ovation by supporters 

Raskin shows typical tenacity as he holds off challenge from Ukraine’s Yehor Yarmoliuk

He said that, with a little time and patience, his talented young players would develop into valuable assets who could make the club a healthy profit.

The problem is that he didn’t give them a framework in which to thrive. For as long as a team is losing, morale is low. It doesn’t matter how good players are: if they are not winning, they are not flourishing, and nobody wants to know.

In the space of a month, interim manager Barry Ferguson hasn’t offered Raskin some new insight that has transformed him into the next Kevin De Bruyne.

What Ferguson has done is help Rangers to win games, and there is no substitute for that when it comes to developing players, building their confidence and introducing them to a wider audience.

Ivory Coast have discovered a real diamond in Diomande 

Nico Raskin wasn’t the only Rangers player to enhance his reputation during the international break.

Midfield sidekick Mohamed Diomande made his first start for Ivory Coast in their 1-0 over Gambia and had fans purring over his contribution in the engine room.

Lining up in an advanced position behind Borussia Dortmund striker Sebastien Haller, and flanked by former Arsenal man Nicolas Pepe and Brighton livewire Simon Adingra, Diomande did not look out of place as the Elephants trampled all over the visitors’ defensive game plan.

While it was only his sixth appearance for his country, he did more than enough to suggest he will be a fixture in the west African side’s midfield for some time to come. Perhaps that’s not such good news for Rangers fans when the Africa Cup of Nations next comes around.

Mohamed Diomande transferred his form for Rangers to international duty with Ivory Coast 

Vaclav Cerny (left) also caught the eye with performance for Czechs against Gibraltar

Ianis Hagi of Rangers was on the scoresheet in Romania’s 5-1 victory over San Marino

Vaclav Cerny scored a sensational goal for the Czech Republic as they ran out 4-0 winners over Gibraltar on Tuesday. The Ibrox winger, who was a constant menace in his nation’s 2-1 win over Faroe Islands last Saturday, picked up the ball in space on the right touchline, jinked inside and let rip with a rocket to put the Czechs in front and record his seventh goal for his country.

He then set up a second for Patrik Schick as the Czechs made it two wins from two to start their campaign.

Also on the scoresheet this week was Ianis Hagi, who converted a second-half penalty in Romania’s 5-1 win in San Marino.

Meanwhile, Hamza Igamane’s breakthrough season reached a new peak as he made his first appearance for Morocco after coming on as a late substitute in their 2-1 win over Niger.

The Ibrox striker will have certainly got a taste for it, too. He was on hand to help Bilal El Khannouss celebrate the last-minute winner which ensured the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists maintained their 100 per cent record — five wins from five — in qualifying.

Nedim Bajrami had a less enjoyable break. After struggling during his side’s 2-0 defeat to England last Friday, the 26-year-old dropped to the bench for Monday’s 3-0 win over Andorra.

Rangers fans still haven’t taken to the man who scored the fastest goal in European Championship history against Italy last summer — but a bit of Barry Ferguson magic could yet do wonders for the Swiss-born midfielder. Watch this space.

Rangers fans are praying Sancet stays on the sidelines 

Those of a light blue persuasion will spend the next week or so anxiously awaiting medical updates from Spain ahead of the Europa League quarter-final against Athletic Bilbao.

Star man Oihan Sancet of Athletic Bilbao could present a major obstacle in the Europa League

Sancet, second from left, also scored on his debut for Spain against Scotland in 2023

In particular, they will be praying that star midfielder Oihan Sancet’s hamstring strain needs a bit more time to heal given the devastating form he was showing before being sidelined at the end of February.

The 24-year-old homegrown player has become the beating heart of the Basque side and his contribution to their charge to the fringes of a title challenge in La Liga has been one of the stories of the season.

He scored six goals for the club in his last four league appearances — including a hat-trick in a 3-0 defeat of Girona — and has 14 for the season, outshining his more celebrated team-mates Inaki and Nico Williams in the process.

He was badly missed as Bilbao lost to third-placed Atletico Madrid on his first game out of the team, but they trail joint leaders Real Madrid and Barcelona by only eight points and are enjoying an eight-point cushion over fifth-placed Villarreal as they look set to claim a Champions League place.

An attacking midfielder who thrives on running at opponents, Sancet could be a devastating game-changer if he can prove his fitness before next week’s trip to Ibrox.

He has previous against Scottish opposition too.

On his first cap for Spain, against Scotland in Seville in October 2023, Sancet claimed a debut goal. It was initially credited as a Ryan Porteous own goal, following a costly slip by Aaron Hickey, as La Roja gained revenge for their humbling at Hampden earlier in the campaign.

Linked with moves to Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea among others, Sancet is a player fast reaching his peak. Rangers fans will just be hoping this tie comes around too soon for him.

Statement is a sign of the times ahead of US takeover 

Rangers’ decision to release a statement, condemning some of their supporters’ conduct as ‘deeply saddening and frankly embarrassing’, is a fascinating insight of what the future may hold under new ownership.

On the face of it, the club were reacting to a banner deemed ‘racist and/or discriminatory’ by UEFA. ‘Keep woke foreign ideologies out,’ read the message during the Europa League game against Fenerbahce. ‘Defend Europe.’

In a scathing response by Rangers, one that far exceeds anything they have previously said about sections of their own support, it was made quite clear that the kind of prejudice often overlooked in the past will no longer be tolerated at Ibrox.

Rangers are set for huge changes at club with an American takeover in the pipeline

In the key passage, they said: ‘For the avoidance of doubt, if you do not believe in 2025 that absolutely everyone is welcome to follow Rangers whether at Ibrox or away, then Rangers is not the club for you, and you should disassociate yourself with the club immediately.’

These were strong words from Rangers, a club that has often struggled with the age-old dilemma: how to address Glasgow’s sectarian problem, as well as other forms of social discrimination, without upsetting the fanbase on whom they depend.

Until now, successive guardians of Rangers have paid only lip service to the issues that hold the club back, saying just enough to appease the wider world without going so far as to alienate those who pay at the gate.

But what if their next guardian is less concerned with domestic revenue than making an international impact? What if the owner is a bluechip, corporate machine for whom parochial, outdated views are a non-starter?

You can bet that the imminent takeover by US-based 49ers Enterprises had something to do with the statement. And you can be just as sure that there will be plenty more where that came from once the investors have taken over.

For Rangers will not become a modern, progressive club, with a truly global reach, unless they are prepared to take decisions that are unpopular with some of their more ‘traditional’ followers.

Now that they have prospective owners who are big enough to do that, the Ibrox club find themselves on the brink of a brave new world, one that has the potential to transform them, culturally as well as financially.

Cup triumph was catalyst for a Rangers Treble 

Rangers striker Kirsty Howat wants their Sky Sports Cup final triumph to be the catalyst for more success between now and the summer.

A 5-0 victory against Hibs at Fir Park last Sunday earned Rangers women their first trophy of the season and set them up perfectly for a shot at two more.

While nobody in the dressing room is talking about a treble, Jo Potter’s side are in the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup and just two points off the pace in the league table.

Unbeaten in 10 matches since the turn of the year — a sequence that includes nine victories — who is to say that Rangers won’t complete a clean sweep of domestic honours?

Kirsty Howat holds the Sky Sports Cup aloft after Rangers’ victory over Hibernian Women

Howat (far right) jumped for joy after she scored for Rangers in the 5-0 triumph at Fir Park

Howat believes the cup win was catalyst for even more success for Rangers this season

The Rangers team who went on to lift the trophy for the third campaign in succession

Inspired by a pre-match pep talk from men’s manager Barry Ferguson, they were hugely impressive against Hibs, a side they had not previously beaten this season.

Having taken a half-time lead through the prolific Katie Wilkinson, they found the net four more times through Camille Lafaix, Howat, Rio Hardy and a Kirsten Reilly own goal.

Howat believes that winning the Sky Sports Cup for the third season in a row can give Rangers an important boost as they set their sights on more silverware.

‘It needs to kick us on now,’ said Howat. ‘We have one trophy in the bag and we know this feeling. We’re still in the other two competitions, so it’s going to be a really exciting end to the season.

‘It says a lot for the rest of the season and puts a real stamp on it. We know that’s our levels; when we turn up, we can play unbelievably well. We hadn’t beaten [Hibs] this season, so to do it in that fashion is brilliant.’

Attentions now turn to the league, with Rangers at home to Hearts on Sunday.. Leaders Hibs are away to Motherwell.