DRAWING POWER
Celtic face Red Bull pair as tough group pleases Gerrard
CELTIC will take on the multi-billionpound Red Bull empire — and face a reunion with familiar foes Rosenborg — as they bid to advance beyond the Europa League group stage.
And Rangers boss Steven Gerrard insists he got precisely the kind of draw he wanted, as he urged his players to ‘go and compete’ with Villarreal, Rapid Vienna and Spartak Moscow.
The Parkhead side were drawn in Group B which sees them take on RB Leipzig of Germany and sister outfit Red Bull Salzburg of Austria. Both clubs have close links with the Red Bull energy drinks firm, a brand estimated to be worth almost £10billion by business analysts Forbes.
There was some doubt last year that the pair would be allowed to play in European competition at the same time.
But UEFA cleared both to take part in last season’s Champions League, deciding there was no breach of rules designed to prevent dual ownership and ‘protect the integrity of the competition.’
While the pair being drawn in the same group will kick up another hornet’s nest of controversy, Celtic’s main concern will be that both are extremely well-funded outfits — courtesy of their owners/sponsors — with serious ambitions to progress.
Speaking about a group that will also see Scotland’s champions resume battle with Rosenborg, who they knocked out of this season’s Champions League qualifiers, Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers said: ‘It’s a tough draw with both Red Bull teams and also another trip back to Rosenborg.
‘It’s funny, I spoke to their captain on the pitch after we played them and he said: “Congratulations, maybe see you next year”. But it’ll be a couple of months later. It’s a competition where we want to go as far as we can. But we will respect the three teams that are in there.’
Rangers, as bottom seeds, were always going to get a tough draw — but Gerrard insisted he had been granted his wish in Group G in the shape of three teams of real European pedigree.
The former Champions League winner with Liverpool said: ‘I was hoping the players would be drawn against teams with a name and stature — where they could go and rub shoulders with top players and play in nice stadiums, really enjoy the experience.
‘Having said that, we want to go and compete; this is not just about getting Europa League experience. We know that’s vital for the players individually but, for me, we have to go and test ourselves against the best.
‘It’s fantastic for the fans, the locations they will be able to travel to in order to support the team.
‘We couldn’t have asked for a better draw, three established teams with a lot of experience. We are delighted.’
Rangers were greeted by a huge crowd of well-wishers when they touched down at Glasgow Airport in the early hours of yesterday morning, having returned victorious — on aggregate — from their play-off against Ufa in Russia.
Speaking about the reception, Gerrard said: ‘That was a nice surprise for us. We never got told. We got off the plane and saw it on a TV and I thought: “Oh there’s about 50, 60 fans there”.
‘Then we got our card marked that it was a couple of thousand. It was a nice surprise for the players, they’d put a lot of effort into the game on the night and then they had a long flight.
‘So, it was great for them to get the adulation. It was deserved.’
Since the revamp of the Europa League, only four of 96 teams to attempt it have come through four qualifying rounds to reach the group stage.
‘The achievement is huge,’ said Gerrard after his team progressed all the way to the groups at the expense of Shkupi, Osijek, Maribor and now Ufa. We’ve been together a short time.
‘It’s eight games — and eight tough games. The opposition at the beginning, people don’t give them much respect, but we were in pre-season mode — so it comes with a different challenge.
‘To get through to this stage and qualify, in the manner that they did in the end last night, I thought it was truly heroic.’
Both Old Firm clubs avoided their English rivals, with Arsenal drawn in Group E with Portugal’s Sporting Lisbon, Qarabag from Azerbaijan and Vorskla Poltava of Ukraine, and Chelsea in Group L with Greeks PAOK Salonika, BATE Borisov from Belarus and Vidi of Hungary.