Sparta smashed 8 goals past Celtic and I didn’t think they played that well...
Slavia are on a different level and Rangers will have their work cut out to knock them out
A team from Prague has already devastated one half of Glasgow in Europe this season.
When Sparta faced Celtic in the Europa League groups, Hoops supporters were stunned as two damaging 4-1 defeats sent them crashing out.
Now it’s the turn of Czech rivals Slavia, who take on Rangers in the knock-out phase of the competition on Thursday night in Prague.
And for any Ibrox punters who were impressed by Sparta stuffing Celtic, Jiri Jarosik has warned that Slavia are on a different level altogether.
The former Hoops midfielder is full of praise for Jindrich Trpisovsky’s side, who beat Premier League outfit Leicester City in the last round.
Jarosik insists Slavia are the best team in Czech Republic by some distance with Sparta and the rest lagging behind.
He expects Rangers to give them a stiffer test than the Foxes but admits Steven Gerrard’s side will have to be at their best to go through to the last eight.
Ex- Chelsea star Jarosik told MailSport ahead of the first leg in Prague: “Sparta beat Celtic twice this season, 4-1 in this competition.
“But this Slavia team is much better, 100 per cent.
“For the last two or three years they’ve been by far the best team in Czech Republic.
“All the other teams, including Sparta, are trying to catch them. I’d say Slavia are a level above everyone else now.
“I watched the Sparta v Celtic games but Celtic were terrible in both – horrible.
“I actually thought Sparta showed they had problems against Celtic. I didn’t think they played that well – and still won both games 4-1.
“So of course Rangers face a big challenge against Slavia.
“I haven’t watched a lot of their games but I saw one of the derby matches and I liked the way Rangers played.
“They played more of a European style of game and that is important. Rangers have changed the way they play, along with some of the players, to have a more European style under
Gerrard.
“This has been