How Lassana Coulibaly became an instant hit with Rangers fans

Rangers recorded an impressive 1-0 win over Croatians NK Osijek for the club's first European away win for a decade on Thursday night.

• READ MORE: Osijek 0 - 1 Rangers: Morelos goal gives Gers first leg lead

And one player who stood out in the Europa League second round qualifying win for the Gers was new signing Lassana Coulibaly.

Rangers boss Steven Gerrard brought the player for his no nonsense approach in the midfield.

He said after the signing of the Malian: “Coulibaly is a destroyer type midfielder, he is very different to what he have here. I have watched him numerous times and he breaks play up and keeps it simple. He will add a bit of power in the engine room for us.”

Rangers fans got to see Coulibaly’s destructive qualities in all their glory against Osijek as he thundered into a challenge, sending an opponent into the sky and coming away with the ball.

A clip of the challenge went viral on social media, provoking positive responses from Rangers fans.

@Conor_Spence67 tweeted: “Of what I seen tonight of Rangers, Lassana Coulibaly looks a steal. Goldson looks strong and physical and what they’ve been needing. 3 clean sheets in the 3 games is pretty impressive.”

Lassana Coulibaly has become an instant hit at Rangers. Picture: SNS/Ross MacDonald

@KWRFC1995 referred back to Gerrard’s comments about the midfielder: “I can see why Steven Gerrard called Lassana Coulibaly a destroyer. What a tackle!”

For @samparker92 Coulibaly is the type of player the team have been missing: “All we’ve wanted for the past 6/7 years is a Lassana Coulibaly. Now we’ve got it!”

Rangers won the tie thanks to a headed goal from Colombian striker Alfredo Morelos. The second-leg of the tie takes place on Thursday at Ibrox.

• READ MORE: Steven Gerrard reveals why he signed Lassana Coulibaly for Rangers