Rangers midfielder Tochi Chukwuani has revealed that he began his football career as a goalscoring striker and looked up to legendary forwards Thierry Henry and Didier Drogba while developing as a young player.

The 22-year-old midfielder made the revelation in an interview with the Scottish club, explaining that he originally played as a centre-forward during his early footballing days in Denmark. 

Chukwuani joined Rangers during the winter transfer window after an impressive spell with Austrian side SK Sturm Graz.

Since arriving in Scotland, he has quickly established himself in the team, making six league appearances in midfield.

Reflecting on his early playing days, Chukwuani said he started out as a striker at Danish club B1973 Herlev, where he developed a reputation for scoring goals.

"No, actually when I started at this club (B1973 Herlev) I was a striker. I used to score a lot of goals. My idols at the time were Thierry Henry and Didier Drogba — those kinds of strikers,” Chukwuani said in an interview with Rangers official YouTube channel.

According to the midfielder, the switch to a deeper role happened soon after he joined Akademisk Boldklub.

“It was only after I moved to my second club that I got moved down to play in midfield. I always loved scoring and getting that feeling of putting the ball in the net."

Before completing his move to Rangers, Chukwuani enjoyed a productive spell at Sturm Graz, where he made 62 appearances across all competitions, scoring four goals and providing three assists.

Born in Denmark to Nigerian heritage, Chukwuani has represented Denmark at several youth levels, featuring for the country’s U16, U17, U18, U19, U20 and U21 teams.

Despite his involvement in Denmark’s youth setup, the midfielder remains eligible to represent the Nigeria national football team at the senior international level, having yet to make an appearance for Denmark’s senior side.

Adeyemi Adewale