SHEL-SHOCKED
Irish part-timers gave Gio real fright in his Euro debut — but their boss that night could tell he was class act
TONIGHT marks Giovanni Van Bronckhorst’s first taste of the Champions League as Rangers manager. And one would imagine it will be a much more serene affair than when he first stepped out into qualifying for Europe’s elite competition as an Ibrox player.
On a warm summer’s night in Tranmere 24 years ago, Dick Advocaat’s new and expensively assembled side ran out against Shelbourne at neutral Prenton Park.
It was a Rangers squad featuring one player with a fresh World Cup winner’s medal — French substitute goalkeeper Lionel Charbonnier — while Rino Gattuso would conquer the planet with Italy in 2006 and Van Bronckhorst would go on to reach the final with the Netherlands in 2010.
However, remarkably, the Ibrox side were staring unexpected humiliation in the face as they fell 3-0 behind after 58 minutes.
Robbed of home advantage due to fears over fan trouble, the League of Ireland side had been further fired up by Advocaat dismissing them as ‘amateurs’.
Shelbourne duly went for the throat — and after Sergio Porrini had put through his own net, the hosts added further goals from Mark Rutherford and Pat Morley.
Manager Dermot Keely rated the look on Advocaat’s face at 3-0 down one of the highlights of his career but nearly a quarter of a century on he remains unwilling to say the former Ibrox boss’ surname.
‘The Rangers manager called us amateurs and I responded by calling him Dick Vodka from then on,’ Keely told Sportsmail.
‘He was very insulting to us. We were a part-time outfit and normally when people don’t respect you they play the game and they say all the right things.
‘But he talked down at us and I wasn’t having any of that, so I called him Dick Vodka in the press conference because I knew his last name was a Dutch spirit.
‘It was hard enough for us having to play the first leg away from home.
‘But we were all fired up by your man’s comments, and when we went 3-0 up I remember looking at the scoreboard and saying: “F*** me! What is going on here?”. The Rangers bench looked in shock, too. They looked rattled and it was good to see.’
Rangers ultimately avoided defeat as five goals in the last 32 minutes from Jorg Albertz (two penalties), two from Gabriel Amato and Van Bronckhorst secured a 5-3 victory on the night.
Keely is in no doubt that Van Bronckhorst, whose goal made it 3-3, played a key role in rescuing Rangers from disgrace.
‘He was playing left-back but he was really playing outside left and he was outstanding,’ he said.
‘He was like a steam train going up and down that side. He never stopped and then you had Amato, who was also like an express train down the other side of the park. Van Bronckhorst was one of the main reasons Rangers turned it around.
‘We should have dug in. I should have asked the team to sit back. It was probably a lack of experience on my part.
‘I had a reputation of being a defensive manager, so I should have just got the team to sit on the edge of the penalty box and pray.
‘But it was a dream come true being 3-0 up against Rangers and we were playing so well, so I didn’t change it — and Rangers got the job done.’
For Shelbourne, the second leg in Glasgow a week later saw the Irish side beaten 2-0 for a 7-3 aggregate loss that looked more comfortable for Rangers than it had been in reality.
There was, however, time for another dig at Advocaat as the visitors staged a Gaelic football match on the Ibrox turf 24 hours before kick-off.
‘That was my idea and it was a bit naughty,’ laughed Keely. ‘I just thought if he thinks we are a bunch of amateurs then we will play Gaelic football before the match.
‘It was better than going into a bar and slapping him around the head, which I could have done.
‘The stunt was really aimed at taking away the nerves of the players. Although we didn’t say it, we knew the tie was over.
‘It was about not making a show of ourselves at Ibrox — and we didn’t make a show of ourselves. We put in a good performance against Rangers.’
Van Bronckhorst succeeded Steven Gerrard as Rangers manager last season and led his team all the way to the final of the Europa League, losing on penalties to German side Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville.
And even all those years ago in Tranmere, Keely felt sure the Dutchman was destined for the very top as a player and a boss.
He said: ‘I’m not surprised Van Bronckhorst has gone so far in his career. That night you could see he was a professional, so good and so fit.
‘He was a really clever player, too. Every run he made was measured. Every time he made a run he got the ball.
‘You could see he was a class act and you can see he is a good manager by taking Rangers to a European final.
‘He will be hoping for a less eventful qualifier tonight than the one he had against my Shelbourne side all those years ago.’