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Academy midfielder Paul Nsio was thrilled to travel with the first-team squad for their pre-season camp in Holland and the experience, with senior players, has given him extra motivation to succeed at Rangers.
The-18-year-old, who joined from London club Lambeth Tigers two years ago, was one of a number of youth players invited to join the summer tour and the experience was invaluable.
Paul has impressed the coaching staff with his work ethic, guile and creativity in the middle of the park and determination to progress and former manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst rewarded his early endeavour with a competitive debut against Queen of the South in August 2022.
It was a late run-out in a 3-1 League Cup win at Ibrox – Academy players Leon King, Adam Devine, Zak Lovelace, Archie Stevens, Robbie Ure and Charlie McCann also featured in that game – and it came just four months into his Light Blues career.
It was only a fleeting appearance, but it was an experience Nsio cherished and will never forget so he is eager to feature again for the first-team as soon as he possibly can.
He is loving his new life in Glasgow and was also proud to play a part in Steven Smith’s Scottish Youth Cup Final-winning team against Aberdeen at Hampden earlier this year.
Reflecting on his promising spell at the club so far as he showed his support for The Rangers Youth Development Company – who have donated more than £11 million to the Rangers Academy to date – Paul said: “I am from South London and moving to a massive club like Rangers from there as a young player is not normally realistic.
“But I started at a boys club – Lambeth Tigers – and my coach there started doing some video work and we showed it to a scout here and I was invited to come for a trial.
“I did that three times and they told me they wanted to sign me, I actually signed the Rangers contract on my birthday and it was a great feeling.
“Since then I have been here, working hard every day and I love it.
“London is so busy, so it was a big change to come to Scotland, it is much quieter and I try to keep myself grounded.
“The facilities here are incredible and all the people were so nice to me when I first joined.
“I felt part of Rangers from the very first day as everyone was so welcoming.
“I just want to thank everyone who has helped me here since I joined, it is obviously a different environment coming from London to Glasgow but I have really enjoyed it.
“I have been here for about 2 years and have a contract until 2026 and hopefully longer.
“I just focus on my football and come in every day and do as much as I can to get me round to the first-team side, which is where I want to be.
“I want to show the staff what I can do and what I am made of to get a chance.
“It meant so much to make my debut in that cup game at Ibrox.
“I was at the club for about four months at that time and was working flat out to show what I could do.
“I remember we played Celtic in a youth game and won 3-1 then when I was in for recovery two days later I was told I was in the squad for the Queen of the South game.
“I couldn’t believe it and went home to call my mum and dad.
“It meant so much to me to get that news.
“I remember Gio called me, Archie Stevens and Zak Lovelace into his office and he told us he would try and get us on in the last 10 minutes of the game.
“I was so grateful we got on.
“I was told to warm up and then I was playing in front of 40,000 fans at Ibrox. That was so big for me.
“I was only 16 when I had played for Rangers and the next day I had school!
“All the younger boys told me they saw me playing at Ibrox the night before.
“I didn’t know too much about the club before I joined but I know all about it now.
“This is a fantastic football club and a great place to learn.
“I was also on pre-season with the first-team in Holland in the summer and that was a great experience for me, and all the Academy players who travelled.
“Brian Gilmour called me to tell me the news and I was so thankful for the opportunity.
“I just wanted to show everyone what I was capable of and I learned so much on that trip.
“I learned from the senior players and they kept giving us tips on the pitch and in the gym.
“James Tavernier, Leon Balogun and Connor Goldson, when he was here, were great with the Academy boys and I was grateful for their advice.
“We had to match everything the first-team were doing and I enjoyed it.
“There is always a lot of running, which is not enjoyable, but we all worked as hard as we could.
“It was such a helpful experience and you could see how quick the training was right away. I couldn’t afford to lose focus, you have to be on it all the time.
“I started off as a goalkeeper when I weas younger but I moved forward to midfield and I love the position.
“Off the ball I am energetic, on the ball I am a skilful player and I like one v ones and making killer passes.
“When the ball is in the air I can also win it and I think of myself as someone who can dominate the midfield.
“My football heroes growing up were Paul Pogba and Cristiano Ronaldo.
“Pogba and I have the same birthday and first name and I always looked up to him.
“Ronaldo is all about hard work and progressing and that’s what I want to do.
“He is still playing and performing as he approaches 40 and that’s down to the hard work he has put in every day.
“If you do that, you get your rewards.
“There are a lot of great coaches to learn from here and it is also good to learn from former Rangers players like Steven Smith, Jonatan Johansson and Brian Gilmour.
“We can develop from their experiences here and they can make our game better.
“They all help us understand the game even more.
“Brian has helped me a lot and it’s great he is with the first-team now.
“He is always telling me to focus on my first touch and I work very hard on that.
“I played with guys like Ross McCausland and Robbie Fraser at the Academy and it is great to see them as part of the first-team squad now too.
“Every single day they train, work hard and eat the right way and I look up to them.
“You have to be ready to take your chances in football and Ross did that last season.
“When Zak Lovelace got injured against St Mirren, Ross came on and his career has shot up.
“I hope to get another chance with the first-team, this is the dream of every Academy player.
“I’ve trained with the first-team quite a lot and I need to be ready to take my chance.
“The manager and his coaching staff have given me great advice and I will do my best in every single training session to prove to them I am ready to move on to the next level.
“We’ve played B Team games against Manchester United, Leeds and Luton already this season and they are always great experiences for us too.
“Manchester United were on another level and we had to work so hard in that game.
“You can be well on top in matches against Scottish teams but the games we have played against English teams have been so beneficial to us.
“The intensity is quicker and this can only help us get round to the first-team side.
“You have to be single-minded and selfish in football because you want to get to the first-team.
“Off the pitch I am friendly with the Academy players but when you are on it you have to show what you can do.
“Football is a tough game and you have to make the most of any opportunities you get.
“I hope there’s more to come. I’ve already spoken to the gaffer who told me to keep pushing and that my time will come.
“I’ve achieved a lot since I joined and I was over the moon to win the Scottish Youth Cup at Hampden last season, but I will keep working as hard as possible to do even better.”
Profit from RYDC products Rangers Lotto, Stadium Bricks, Scratchcards and The Union Jackpot draw all go to the Academy to help produce players like Paul, while profit from Museum Lotto is donated to the club for the
upkeep and maintenance of the museum.
CLICK HERE to play Rangers Lotto
CLICK HERE to play The Union Jackpot
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