Rangers have been handed a major Old Firm boost after Calvin Bassey was handed a shock snub for Nigeria's final African Cup of Nations squad.
Ibrox aces Joe Aribo and Leon Balogun were both included in interim manager Augustine Eguavoen's final 28-man list for the Cameroon tournament.
But despite Bassey playing a key part on Giovanni van Bronckhorst's side since the Dutchman was appointed, he's surprisingly failed to make the cut after he was initially included in the provisional squad named by previous manager Gernot Rohr.
It means Bassey will be available for all of Rangers' post-winter break fixtures including, crucially, the showdown with Celtic at the beginning of February.
It also means Rangers wouldn't be allowed to request any possible postponement of games because three of their players are away on international duty.
Aribo and Balogun are expected to join up on December 29 to Abuja in Nigeria where the Super Eagles will hold a pre-tournament training camp.
Nigeria open their tournament against Egypt on January 11 at Garoua and also face Sudan and African Cup of Nations debutants Guinea Bissau.
