Gerry Armstrong, the former Northern Ireland internationalist and Sky Sports La Liga pundit, has said Rangers will need a result at Ibrox on Thursday night against Athletic Bilbao if they are to have any chance of going deeper in the Europa League.
Barry Ferguson’s side go into the game on the back of a woeful domestic run of five successive defeats but with a reputation of upsetting the odds when it comes to European performances.
Armstrong expects that Rangers will park the weekend defeat to Hibs given that the Europa League is their last hurrah this season. And Armstrong also revealed that the reaction to the draw in Spain was that this one could be tough to negotiate for Bilbao.
“They’re going to have to play well at this stage,” he said. “When you get through to the last eight of a competition, any type of competition in Europe, it’s going to be tough opposition.
“When the draw was made they were all saying, oh, a Scottish, they’re not going to lie down. They’re going to be hard to play against. They’re going to fight for every ball. So, you know, I expect Rangers to give a good account of themselves.
“I’ve covered Rangers over the last three years in the Europa League. And they’ve really excelled. They’ve done really well for me. And they’ve done better than I thought they would.
“But they’re season, there’s nothing else to play for now. It’s Europe. And that’s it. Bilbao aren’t a team with any real superstars. But they work hard for each other and they have got players up front who technically have got a lot of pace and skill . They don’t lose a lot of goals in the league and they are a hard team to play against.
“But Rangers have got players I think that technically are better suited in Europe.”
Barry Ferguson will have decisions to be made in terms of team selection. Jack Butland was culpable at Hibs’ opener, the latest in a season that has been littered with errors. John Souttar is suspended as is Mohamed Diomande.
Bilbao, one of the favourites to go on and win the tournament, have brothers Niko and Inaki Williams in the ranks, both of whom have courted significant attention
“These two boys are technically very good and are international players,” he said. “If you get in the Spanish international team, you’ve got to be a good player. And it’s pace as well.
“They’re not prolific goalscorers, neither of them are. But they are match winners. One of them can be a match winner on the day. That’s when you have to be careful. They’ve got pace and they’ve got technical ability. The goalkeeper, Unai Simon, is also very good.
“I think they would rather they had the away game first. But they will need a goal. It would be great if they could take a goal with them. know they’re going to be under intense pressure when they get over to Bilbao. But listen, they dug in brilliantly away from home in the last round.
“The goals they scored were brilliant. I was disappointed then with how they played at Ibrox. They gave away goals and nearly threw it away. But listen, football’s crazy. It’s been a crazy season for Rangers and I don’t want to see them go out. So I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
And Armstrong has identified Vaclav Cerny as the catalyst for Rangers if they are to go and take something from the first leg.
“I like Cerny,” he said. “Technically he is a very good player. technically he is the one that could stand be a standout player on the day but they are going to have to play well at this stage. It’s going to be tough opposition.
“You don’t get to the top four in La Liga without being a good team.”
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