Makhanya has wasted no time in settling in at Ibrox following his summer switch from Philadelphia Union
Virgil van Dijk and Olwethu Makhanya
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Premiership player of the month Olwethu Makhanya is winning plenty of plaudits for his successful start to life at Rangers, with some figures in Scottish football predicting he will make the Ibrox club millions down the line.
But one former Scotland star has scoffed at comparisons being drawn between the South Africa international and two modern greats in the English Premier League.
Makhanya was signed by Derek McInnes from MLS outfit Philadelphia Union for around £3million and he was quickly formed a strong defensive partnership with Emmanuel Fernandez.
The 22-year-old has helped Gers score seven consecutive wins in all competitions, with the side claiming five clean sheets in the process.
The Light Blues go into the weekend just two points behind Celtic and can overtake once again them with a victory away to Dundee on Saturday night before Hoops face Motherwell at Fir Park on Sunday.
Fans and pundits are raving about Makhanya's quickfire impact but ex Scotland, Chelsea and Everton winger Pat Nevin has moved to play down the hype after seeing the defender compared with none other than Virgil van Dijk.
Speaking to CasinoHawks, he said: "People have been getting a bit carried away. I've heard the words ‘John Stones’, I've heard the words ‘Virgil van Dijk’. Look, it's early days. It's really, really early.
"But, yeah, he does look as if he is one of the answers that they needed at the moment. And, again, Scottish football is interesting because a lot of decent players, good players come to Scottish football and take a while to settle.
Olwethu Makhanya and Derek McInnes with their Player of the Month and Manager of the Month awards for September(Image: Luke Nickerson/Rangers FC/Shutterstock)
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"I mean, I remember coming back up near the end of my career and thinking, ‘This'll be all right, this'll be easy. I've been playing at the top level in England.’ Then you thought, ‘Is anyone going to slow down for a minute? Is anyone actually going to go and make intelligent, different runs?’ Or it was just mad.
"It's extreme up here. It's a different type of football. But he seems to have just walked into it, cruised into it. But, yeah, hold on, just give it a while.
"You know, the winter is coming, a lot of players find it different and difficult over the entirety of a Scottish season, especially when there's one or two mistakes or things go badly.
"At the moment, yeah, he looks like one of the ones Derek McInnes is going to build the base from."
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