LEE’S EURO WARNING FOR STEVIE’S SIDE

Complacency cost Gers in Europe a decade ago but that is a mistake Gerrard will not let his team repeat

BACK in the 2007/08 campaign, Rangers took seven points from their first three games in the Champions League group stages … and still never qualified for the knockout rounds.

A win over Spartak Moscow on Thursday night would take Steven Gerrard’s side onto that same tally at the halfway stage of their Europa League section but there is no way that he will be getting ahead of himself or looking too far down the line.

That season a decade ago will always be remembered for the run-up to the UEFA Cup final, but the wins over Stuttgart and Lyon and draw with Barcelona were incredible matches for Walter Smith’s squad.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t finish the job and make it out of the group. In truth, we were blown away by a star-studded Lyon team in the last game at Ibrox.

We were well beaten. Then, of course, we went on the run to Manchester and we had some amazing nights both home and away in Europe.

When you are playing in Europe you can take nothing for granted. You can’t take your eye off the ball.

Maybe there was a wee bit of complacency crept in that season and we thought we were all but there. Even if Rangers do win on Thursday, they can’t afford to think like that.

Spartak will arrive at Ibrox having just sacked their manager and that can act as a positive and a negative. Some players that haven’t been playing will get a lift from that and some that have been playing might go the other way.

People will look at it and think that Rangers should be winning, or at the very least extending their unbeaten run in Europe to 11 matches this season.

But the word for me is complacency. That can be like a poison in football.

I don’t think it will be a problem for Rangers, though. They have made huge strides from last season in terms of performances and results, and they will take a lot of confidence from that going into a massive game under the lights at a full Ibrox.

They cannot allow complacency to creep in and I am sure the management team will be keeping them on their toes and keeping them grinding out results. You need a fresh mindset in every game.

Spartak aren’t in the best of form, that is why they have changed their manager after all, but they are still a good side and they are in this competition for a reason.

I don’t think there will be a mindset at Rangers of “we will sweep them aside because they are having a bit of trouble and we have played well recently”.

Spartak haven’t started well in the league, they are seventh at the moment after losing at the weekend, but they still have good players and they are still capable of coming here and beating Rangers.

They might not be playing with the confidence they are used to but in football you can get your confidence back just as quickly as you can lose it. Rangers have got to be wary of them and the players will need the crowd to play its part, just like it did for the last half-hour or so of