Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst has got a decision to make regarding Leon Balogun and Filip Helander ahead of their Europa League game tonight.
Rangers come into the game against Borussia Dortmund with a 4-2 lead from the first leg, but without the advantage of away goals to help them out, the tie is still far from over and they will need to be at their best if they are to hold off a side challenging for the title in Germany.
The past four games for Rangers against Hibernian, Annan Athletic, Dortmund and Dundee United have seen Van Bronckhorst go with four different combinations in central defence. Goldson has played in three of the four as well as the vast majority of games this season, so it’s safe to assume he will be one defender, but who should his partner be?
We look at two potential candidates and see which one should go alongside Goldson at the heart of the defence against the German outfit:
Leon Balogun
Will Rangers beat Dortmund in the second leg?
Yes!
No!
Veteran 33-year-old Leon Balogun has certainly found a spot in the team hard to come by this season, as he has only made 22 appearances in all competitions, but he has been able to put up some impressive numbers whilst he has been in the side.
His numbers from the league season look like this: he’s averaged 1.8 tackles, 1.5 interceptions, 0.9 fouls, 3 clearances and 0.2 blocks per game, whilst also winning an average of 3.9 aerial duels per match (via WhoScored), all helping to make sure that Rangers have the second-best defensive record in the league, with just 22 goals conceded from their opening 27 games.
Filip Helander
Having been a regular for the majority of last season, this campaign has been vastly different for Filip Helander, as he’s only been able to make eight appearances overall having been out with a knee injury, but he has slowly managed to make his way into the side in recent weeks.
When put the Swede up against Balogun, who is valued at £720k (as per Transfermarkt) and his numbers in the league, he manages to beat him in some areas, but fall short in others. For instance, he has more blocks per game with 0.3, has committed fewer fouls than him with 0.8, and has even managed to get on the scoresheet once this season.
However, he does have fewer tackles with 1.3, interceptions with 0.5 and aerial duels won with 3, which are arguably the more important stats when it comes to defending (via WhoScored).
TIF verdict…
Looking at the numbers and given how important this match is for them, you would have to give the nod to Balogun on this occasion. Whilst Helander might be slowly getting back up to speed and could well catch Balogun before the season is out, this game just has too much riding on it for him to be put back in.
His time may well come, but it shouldn’t be tonight as Rangers look to hold onto their lead from the first leg and make it through to the next round of the competition.
In other news: Board miss out on £5m, make big statement: Van Bronckhorst drops key Rangers update – opinion