Reaching the groups is ultimate target for McLaughlin
JON McLAUGHLIN insists Rangers are determined to take another leap forward by securing Champions League qualification for the first time since 2010.
The Ibrox outfit have excelled in the Europa League in recent times, reaching last season’s final in Seville after successive years in the last 16.
A place in the continent’s elite competition has remained elusive, though, with Steven Gerrard’s side losing to Malmo in the qualifiers 12 months ago.
Rangers now return to that quest under the management of Giovanni van Bronckhorst in tomorrow evening’s first leg against Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium.
Two rounds of qualifiers must be negotiated to reach the group stage and bank an estimated £40million windfall.
Asked if that felt like the next step for this group of players, goalkeeper McLaughlin said: ‘Definitely. It’s the highest level of football in Europe that you can be involved in.
‘What that brings financially for the club, what that can do for strengthening the squad, what it can do for the players believing in their own ability… if you can go and compete at that level, it then helps you domestically.
‘Of course Champions League football will be huge if we can achieve it.’
Rangers opened their Premiership title bid with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Livingston on Saturday. While recapturing domestic dominance is a priority, Champions League football would add gold dust to the season.
‘Of course it’s a huge target,’ continued McLaughlin. ‘The focus, as always, for the players is to get that league title back but of course Champions League football is a massive thrill as well and a huge achievement if we could do that and everything that comes with it.
‘As players, we are focusing fully on starting the league campaign well and then very quickly the European qualifiers will come.
‘After last year, learning the lessons from Malmo, we know how tough it is going to be. We need to be ready for that. It comes very quickly and you have to be switched on fully. So we will be giving it everything to make sure that the club are in that Champions League group stage.’
Union Saint-Gilloise are only marginally ahead of Rangers in their domestic season, having defeated Charleroi 1-0 on Friday night in their second league match.
‘There is that slight lottery that they come so quickly, these games,’ added McLaughlin. ‘Last year we were playing Malmo, a side that were well into their league campaign.
‘We were at the end of our pre-season, and at the beginning of our campaign, so you face those sort of difficulties. And of course it’s Champions League football.
‘Teams might be lesser known to fans or to yourselves or across the continent but the teams that you face are still very, very high quality.
‘So you’ve got to give full respect to whoever you’re playing, try to put your best performance in.
‘If we do that, we showed last year — with the teams that we went up against and beat in Europe — that we should have more than enough to go and do that. But you have to perform on the night.’
Meanwhile, Tom Lawrence admits Rangers will need to up their performance level from Saturday’s 2-1 win over Livingston when they head to Belgium.
Van Bronckhorst’s side trailed to an early lob from Joel Nouble before goals from Scott Arfield and James Tavernier turned around the Premiership opener.
Asked about the tie against Union Saint-Gilloise, Lawrence (pictured) told RTV: ‘Yeah, I’m looking forward to it.
‘We need to play better than (Saturday) and I’m sure we will be fine.
‘We didn’t show our quality like we should have done. Second half we showed our character and resilience but we look forward now and each game that comes, we look to put
a performance on.’