Rangers star makes 'all or nothing' claim ahead of Celtic clash as Hoops forward eyes silverware
Celtic will face Rangers in the Viaplay Cup Final at Hampden Park on Sunday afternoon.
Rangers defender Leon Balogun has called on his side to take an ‘all or nothing’ approach in Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup Final against Celtic.
Philippe Clement’s men secured their place at Hampden Park last month when Cyriel Dessers and Nedim Bajrami both netted in a 2-1 semi-final win against Motherwell and that has been followed by an impressive run of form. Rangers have battled their way to impressive Europa League wins against Tottenham Hotspur and Olympiakos as well as beating Ligue 1 club Nice in UEFA’s secondary club competition. Clement’s side have also taken 13 points from a possible 15 since that win over the Steelmen - but it is their most recent positive display that has given Balogun heart as he reflected on his side’s battling Ibrox draw with Spurs.
"It would be massive to win the cup as it would be a first major trophy for a lot of the players and it would be huge for the club as well," he told the Rangers official website. “We all sign here to win trophies and this is the next opportunity to do that. In these games, it is always about small margins and concentration is a big factor. At Rangers you have to win. Second is the first loser, so it is all or nothing. Thursday was reassuring, the way we played. I could imagine that it wasn’t expected by many people so we proved a point there. It is about taking that confidence and level of performance into the next game which happens to be quite big. It is very nice to prove a point but first and foremost we owed it to ourselves.
Celtic striker targeting silverware
Adam Idah knows a thing or two about scoring big goals for Celtic in derby clashes with Rangers.
The former Norwich City striker grabbed a dramatic goal that seemed to have given Brendan Rodgers’s side a 3-2 win at Ibrox last season before Rabbi Matondo’s last-gasp equaliser ensured the spoils were shared. However, there would be no reprieve for Rangers in last season’s Scottish Cup Final as Idah netted the only goal of the game as injury-time approached. The Republic of Ireland international will hope to earn a first start against Rangers in Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup Final and he only has one target on his mind ahead of the game.
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He told the Daily Mail: ‘Rangers have been doing well recently but so have we. I think we’ve improved a lot this season. There’s a lot of new boys who have come in. I think everyone can see the way we’ve started this season has been excellent. We’re still striving to do better. Rangers are always going to make it tough but we are looking forward to the challenge. It’s the first silverware of the season and we want to get the job done. It can be a springboard for the rest of the season and we always want to win as many trophies as we can at Celtic.’