Ibrox class of 2022 have shown history is in their hands
FOURTEEN years on from a similar rearguard action in a semi-final in Florence and approaching the 50th anniversary of Cup-Winners’ Cup glory in Barcelona, it was only natural that Rangers’ midweek trip to RB Leipzig in the last four of the Europa League should be shrouded in warm nostalgia.
It most definitely was a display of defensive discipline, mentally exhausting to watch never mind play in, straight from Walter Smith’s 2008 playbook.
As 1972 legend Dave Smith pointed out pre-match, the Barca Bears’ journey towards defeating Dynamo Moscow in the Nou Camp also involved ‘a few games where we got quite a hiding and came out the other side’.
As the Ibrox Class of 2022 consider the most likely way to come out the other side of an imposing return with Leipzig and overturn that one-goal first-leg deficit, though, there is no need for further dwelling on the past. No need to listen for distant echoes from history.
This squad of players have done enough in UEFA competition in recent campaigns to believe they have it within them to scale one more significant mountain. They should take strength from their own achievements rather than the achievements of others. Perhaps a little video montage of some of their own Greatest Hits might be a worthwhile part of the prep.
Since expectation levels heightened with the arrival of Steven Gerrard as manager in 2018, Europe, peculiarly, has been the arena in which there has been constant progress at Rangers.
Ryan Kent spoke again this season about the benefits of playing in matches that are naturally more open and rarely involve opponents doubling up — or even tripling up — on him.
Gerrard’s coach Michael Beale also cited long balls, refereeing standards and physicality in Scotland as reasons why playing continental opposition suited Rangers more than the blood-andsnotters of the SPFL.
In truth, it didn’t cut much ice. Winning trophies in Scotland is what Rangers are about and they haven’t done that often enough. Maybe some of the players think they’re above it. Maybe some of them have their eyes elsewhere. Maybe some just don’t have the appetite for taking a dull yin in Dingwall.
For 90 minutes on Thursday, though — or maybe even 120 — these are issues for another day. Europe has long been where so many of these guys shine or, at the very least, show their inner strength. And there is enough on their respective CVs to suggest they possess the tools to be able to handle the visit of RB Leipzig no matter how the game pans out.
Rangers, you see, have shown they can find different ways to win in Europe. Different ways to problemsolve. The occasional adoption of five-at-the back by new boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst has just been another evolutionary step.
The dream scenario, of course, is to recreate the whirlwind of the last home game against Braga. A goal up after a couple of minutes, bringing parity to the quarter-final, and then relentless to the end of extra-time — even when floored by a goal from the opposition near the end of the regulation 90.
In past seasons, they have also played with intensity at Ibrox. The first half of the 1-0 win against Feyenoord in September 2019, topped off by the goal that formed the one and only element of Sheyi Ojo’s highlights reel, was a strong lesson in how to go about a game.
Of course, it is not always like that and the visit of Leipzig looks likely to be a fraught affair. Domenico Tedesco’s side are fast and dangerous. They will cause problems. Yet, in coming back from being 2-1 down at the end of a torrid first half and getting the home draw against Borussia Dortmund that secured an aggregate win in February, this Rangers side showed levels of grit and nous that have not always been so evident domestically.
In truth, Alfredo Morelos’ winner, wrongly ruled out by VAR, should have made a historic night an even better one.
When they beat Porto at home in November 2019, they had to rely on both Glen Kamara and Connor Goldson clearing efforts off the line before Morelos and Steven Davis earned a great win against a side that reached the Champions League the following season.
First time round against Braga, that same season, they were passed off the park in going 2-0 down. Allan McGregor saving when one-on-one with Joao Palhinha on the hour stopped it going to 3-0. Yet, Rangers still managed to haul themselves off the canvas and win 3-2.
They have also been able to score in clusters in big games at Ibrox. Two goals in four minutes against Red Star this term in an encounter that was end-to-end. Two in four minutes against Porto. Three in 15 minutes in that first visit of Braga. Two in seven minutes in a 2-1 lockdown win over Galatasaray
Failure to strengthen the squad sufficiently over the past two seasons has created staleness. The January window was a disaster. However, the fact the core of this side has been together so long might actually help this week.
Their achievements in Europe alone this term should be enough to sustain them. Yet, of the side that beat Galatasaray last term, the entire starting XI are still at the club. Of the team that beat Porto the season before, 10 of the 11 starters remain in the dressing room with eight available to play against Leipzig. The same stat stands for the wins over Feyenoord and Braga that same campaign.
These guys have braved all kinds of headwinds together and will be asked to call on all that experience on Thursday.
For Rangers, the importance of Kemar Roofe being able to overcome injury and play some part in the absence of Morelos cannot be overstated. The first leg showed Scott Wright and Fashion Sakala do not belong at this level. Joe Aribo being pushed further up early in the second 45 improved things for a while, but he’s no centre-forward either.
If Aaron Ramsey is fit enough to be involved, it could help, too.
However, RB Leipzig, with injured players tipped to return, are certain to have dominant spells. They will bank on Rangers affording Christopher Nkunku more space.
That’s why, for all the loose talk of having to play on the front foot, Van Bronckhorst should go five-atthe-back again and ask for more of the same — with just a little more composure in the attacking areas.
Likewise, he shouldn’t think twice about fielding a shadow team against Celtic today. The league’s gone. The Europa League, more important anyway, offers Champions League access for next season too. And it looks like a mid-table Bundesliga outfit in Eintracht Frankfurt, no matter their results in Europe, will be waiting in the final.
Rangers are heavy underdogs for Thursday. Yet, they relish that role. Kent copped some flak for admitting it — that reduced expectation brings less tension — after scoring away to Braga two seasons back.
That has been part of their problem in domestic football. But this isn’t domestic football. It’s almost a parallel universe where the ennui and disappointment that has marked the campaign at home seems almost irrelevant.
Stories of past conquests abroad will always thread through Rangers’ new adventures, but creating history is more fun than hearing about it.
The evidence exists to suggest that can happen again this week. Not in grainy footage from yesteryear, but, crucially, in the minds and actions of players who have already shown they can take big scalps against the odds at home. By whatever means necessary.