Kenny Dalglish has claimed that Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst is being ‘punished’ for improving Calvin Bassey ahead of his imminent transfer to Ajax.
The Celtic legend told the Sunday Post that it will be ‘heartbreaking’ for van Bronckhorst that he is going to lose such a ‘pivotal’ player to his plans.
Whilst Bassey showed promise when Steven Gerrard was in the Rangers dugout, the highly sought-after defender took his game to another level when van Bronckhorst joined the club in November.
Even in the Europa League last season, despite the penalty shootout heartbreak, Bassey was outstanding for his side during the lead-up to the final and the final itself.
But it seems as though Bassey won’t be showcasing his talents in Rangers colours anymore, as Dalglish shared his thoughts on the matter.
“He appears to now be bracing himself for losing Calvin Bassey,” said Dalglish. “Right now, that is a distinct possibility. Several teams have been linked with the player recently, with Ajax and Brighton just the latest.
“According to some reports, the transfer fee could be in the region of £15-20 million. It’s not for me to put a price on Bassey. But from what I have seen, there is no doubt he is a huge asset. The fact Calvin can operate so well in a number of positions makes him even more desirable to other clubs. He can play left-back in a four or part of a back-three.
“His physical strength, pace and delivery of a cross ball have very quickly made him pivotal to Giovanni’s plans. Calvin’s performances in the Europa League last season put him on the radar of other clubs. But he has gone on to a new level in the past six months, and Giovanni and his staff must take huge credit for that.
“However, with a high level of consistency of performance comes attention. It will be heartbreaking for Giovanni if Calvin moves on. It would almost be like the Rangers manager is being punished for improving the player!”
BASSEY IS AJAX BOUND
Following the conclusion of the 2021/22 season, there was huge interest in Bassey from across Europe, including teams in the Premier League.
Steven Gerrard was seemingly looking to bring Bassey to Aston Villa, but instead, the club signed Ludwig Augustinsson from Sevilla as left-back cover for Lucas Digne.
Whilst a return to the Premier League won’t happen for the former Leicester City man, it’s just a matter of time before he joins Dutch champions, Ajax.
It will be interesting to see how he will fair in Holland, with a lot of change at the Amsterdam-based club following Erik ten Hag’s appointment at Manchester United.
And, most importantly, defender Lisandro Martinez, who has the same versatile skills as Bassey, heading to England to re-join Ten Hag in Manchester United colours.
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