The international break came at precisely the right time for Glasgow Rangers. The Ibrox side had progressed to the quarter-finals of the Europa League before beating Celtic at Parkhead just three days later.
Barry Ferguson will have had a few days to enjoy those results, particularly the latter while keeping an eye on several players who are away representing their national teams.
Speaking of which, what have the boys in Light Blue been up to over the last week or so?
The Rangers players on international duty
It’s been a busy week or so for those at Rangers, travelling off on the globe. Perhaps the most notable national side inclusion was Hamza Igamane. His rampant form at Ibrox earned him his first call-up to the Morocco squad, making his debut against Niger in a World Cup qualifier.
Nedim Bajrami played 63 minutes against England on Friday evening, while Ianis Hagi and Vaclav Cerny both appeared for Romania and the Czech Republic in their recent international games.
Elsewhere, Tom Lawrence and Rabbi Matondo were called up for Wales, with the latter scoring the opener against Kazakhstan during a 3-1 victory. Lawrence failed to come off the bench.
John Souttar started both games against Greece for Scotland, as the 3-1 aggregate loss sent the nation back to League B.
It was a mixed bag for the Rangers contingent, but one player certainly made the most of his first international call-up…
Performance in Numbers
Want data and stats? Football FanCast’s Performance in Numbers series provides you with the latest match analysis from across Europe.
Nico Raskin's incredible display for Belgium
Raskin has arguably been one of the Gers’ finest performers this season, none more so than in the recent Old Firm game when he dominated the midfield and scored the opener.
This led to him being called up for the Belgium squad for their Nations League double-header against Ukraine.
He came off the bench for the final ten minutes during the first leg during the 3-1 defeat, although he did succeed with 93% of his passes and won 100% of his aerial duels despite his limited time on the field.
Having to overcome a two-goal deficit, Raskin was awarded with his first start for Belgium as they defeated Ukranian 3-0 to remain in League A for the next Nations League campaign.
Accurate passes
75/82
Key passes
1
Touches
91
Ground duels (won)
5 (4)
Possession lost
8
Tackles
4
The Gers starlet claimed the Man of the Match award for his performance, which was outstanding to say the least. He completed 91% of his passes during the game, while also making one key pass, winning four of his five ground duels contested and making four tackles.
Deployed at the centre of a three-midfield, Raskin was one of the stars of the 3-0 win, outshining fellow players such as Hans Vanaken and even Manchester City superstar Kevin De Bruyne.
The latter was even hailed as “one of the best players in the world” by Rio Ferdinand just a few years ago and he provided an assist against Ukraine on Sunday evening.
Still, all the talk was about Raskin and how he settled into the midfield with ease, especially with pressure on the country to win by three goals or more to remain in the top division.
The 2026 World Cup starts in just 15 months. If Raskin can replicate these performances between now and then, he will surely be on the plane to North America. That’s for sure.
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