Rangers star scores first international goal in a year but Ibrox team-mate sees 23-match sequence broken

There were mixed fortunes for the trio of Rangers players on international duty on Monday night.

It has already been a good week for Ibrox representatives with midfielder Nico Raskin given a standing ovation on his full Belgium debut as he helped his side earn a 3-0 victory over Ukraine to secure a 4-3 aggregate win in their Nations League play-off, while winger Rabbi Matondo, who is currently on loan at Hannover 96, scored his first goal for Wales as he earned his 13th cap in the 3-1 win over Kazakhstan in a World Cup qualifier.

Ianis Hagi will also return to Glasgow with a spring in his step after scoring his first goal for Romania in a year in the 5-1 win away to San Marino in a World Cup qualifier.

Ianis Hagi was on the scoresheet for Romania in their 5-1 win over San Marino. (Photo by Vasile Mihai-Antonio/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Hagi struck his team's fourth from the penalty spot on the 75-minute mark, shortly after San Marino had pulled a goal back. It was the attacker’s sixth goal in 47 caps but his first since netting a 3-2 friendly defeat to Colombia in March 2024.

Ex-Hearts and St Mirren defender Mihai Popescu was also among the Romania scorers as they bounced back from their 1-0 home defeat to Bosnia and Herzagovina on Friday.

Albania also recovered from their defeat to England on Friday with a 3-0 home win over Andorra in their second World Cup qualifier. However, it proved a frustrating night for Rangers forward Nedim Bajrami who was left on the bench as an unused substitute.

It is an unusual position for Bajrami to find himself in with the 26-year-old, who has six goals in 33 caps, having featured in all of Albania's previous 23 matches stretching back to September 2023. His snub came after the left-footed playmaker was substitued in the 63rd minute of the 2-0 loss at Wembley on Friday.

Elsewhere, Mohamed Diomande earned his first start for Ivory Coast and helped them to a 1-0 win over Gambia. The midfielder, who had previously made five substitute appeanraces for his country, missed out on the initial squad but was handed a late call-up to replace the injured Hamed Traore. He played 68 minutes of the World Cup qualifier before being replaced. One Ivory Coast fan on X described Diomande as the "best midfielder" on display, adding "when he came off, we saw the difference in the middle."