Rangers exit 'saddens' Balogun as five others depart

Leon Balogun (right) went off injured in the opening minutes against Hibernian on Saturday

Leon Balogun has expressed his "sadness" that he was not given the opportunity to say goodbye to the Rangers supporters after he was announced as one of five players leaving Ibrox.

The 36-year-old centre-back's contract runs until the end of May, but in an Instagram post, he expressed surprise that he would not be extending his stay with the Scottish Premiership runners-up.

Ianis Hagi and Tom Lawrence will also leave the club, while loan players Vaclav Cerny, Rafael Fernandes, and Neraysho Kasanwirjo return to their parent clubs.

Balogun made 30 appearances this season, 21 of them starts, including the final four games under interim head coach Barry Ferguson.

"If I would have known that the last two games of the season were my last, I would have made sure to say goodbye to you all accordingly," he said.

"Unfortunately, I wasn't afforded that opportunity, which saddens me as I would have liked to have walked round Ibrox one last time and returned all the love and support you've given me during my two stints."

Balogun, who won every domestic trophy over two spells at Rangers, praised the fans and "people working for the club behind the scenes", adding that it had been an "honour", "privilege" and "pleasure" to play for "this massive club".

Of the other departing players, Cerny was the most influential this season, scoring 18 goals and providing 10 assists but it is unclear what fee Wolfsburg would demand to bring the Czech Republic winger back to Ibrox next season, having paid around £7m for him in 2023.

Hagi settled a contractual issue with Rangers earlier this season to return to playing, having also suffered a knee injury after his best season for the club, the 2020-21 title win under Steven Gerrard.

After a promising start to his Ibrox career, Lawrence endured an injury-hit spell, playing 69 times since joining in 2022, scoring 12 goals.