Tochi Chukwuani has found playing time hard to come by at Rangers this season, but the Danish midfielder handed himself a vital lifeline during Saturday’s 4-0 victory over St Johnstone.

With summer signing Dan Neil and Belgian midfield anchor Nicolas Raskin establishing themselves as Derek McInnes’ go-to central midfield combination, Chukwuani had been pushed to the periphery. Including his cameo at the weekend, the 23-year-old has been restricted to a meagre 49 minutes of Scottish Premiership action this season.

Danny Rohl reacts to Tochi Chukwuani’s Rangers goal, Premier League stars send message

Taking to Instagram after full-time, the midfielder shared match pictures accompanied by a succinct, one-word caption: “Still”. The post served as a clear statement that despite his recent lack of opportunities, his belief and quality at the highest level remain undiminished.

The update prompted an outpouring of encouragement from across the football community, demonstrating the high regard in which Chukwuani is held by colleagues past and present.

Former Rangers manager Danny Rohl joined in by ‘liking’ the post, showing his continued fondness for the Dane alongside former Ibrox teammates Jack Butland and Mohamed Diomande.

The post also drew notable comments from Premier League stars following Newcastle’s 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Sunday, 25 October. Goalscorer William Osula sent a supportive message in Nigerian Pidgin English, writing:

“My brother, let’s go show them. You know you can’t fool with me!”

Meanwhile, Osula’s Newcastle teammate Joe Willock, who is being linked with a move to Besiktas alongside Raskin, simply wrote: “My brother”.

Chukwuani’s current teammates rallied behind him in equal measure, with Ivor Pandur, Bojan Miovski, Minsu Kim, and Raskin leaving supportive comments. Lawrence Shankland, Ryan Naderi, Youssef Chermiti, Dujon Sterling, Ross McCrorie, Tuur Rommens, Vanja Dragojevic, Emmanuel Fernandez, Olwethu Makhanya, James Penrice, Daisuke Yokota, Findlay Curtis and Gassama liked the update.

That means 18 players from McInnes‘ current Rangers squad have reacted to Chukwuani’s latest Instagram post, demonstrating the camaraderie they share between them.

For McInnes, seeing a peripheral player step off the bench to issue such a timely reminder only reinforces the enviable squad depth available as Rangers extend their unbeaten run to nine games across all competitions.

However, at the same time, the likes of Curtis and Dragojevic will be asking serious questions about their involvement at the club after being left as unused substitutes at the weekend.