How Rangers and Europa League seem made for each other

The Ibrox club and the Europa League seem to be made for one another, according to former Rangers midfielder Scott Arfield.

This season, like many before it, European football’s second-tier competition has been Rangers ‘ salvation amid choppy domestic waters.

Rangers’ berth in the Europa League knockouts for the fifth consecutive game was sealed by victory over Union Saint-Gilloise, making it unlikely they would make it to the top eight and guaranteed passage to the last 16.

Despite a very challenging fixture list and a number of injuries, especially in the defense, they have done it once more as manager Philippe Clement was keen to emphasise later.

The Rangers manager can now point to a seriously impressive accomplishment this term because he has been under pressure to perform well in the league, particularly away from home.

“It’s good people start to see more and more, things a few months ago people maybe didn’t believe”, Clement said.

“One of these things is qualification for this Europa League.” The club is headed in the right direction. Is it fast enough to win everything? That’s our ambition.

Rangers entered the final matchday in 13th place in the standings, so it’s important to point out how difficult it was to come out in the top eight.

They ended up playing four of the other seven teams who went straight to the last 16 in Manchester United, Tottenham, Lyon and Olympiakos.

Due to a number of casualties, they ended up playing seven different back-four combinations throughout the eight matches.

Right-back Neraysho Kasanwirjo played left-back against Malmo before he suffered a season-ending injury.

Ridvan Yilmaz and James Tavernier both played right back for Manchestr United and Union, respectively, while James Tavernier was forced to play left back for two Premier League clubs.

After Leon King was forced off with a head knock in the first quarter, Ross McCausland, a diminutive right-winger, was called on to replace him at Ibrox against the Belgians.

Rangers finished with several teenagers on the field in their final two games.

All things considered, the resilience was incredibly strong, with only three opponents contributing to their eighth-place finish.

” Maybe we don’t have the talent of other teams – but it’s about mentality, “Clement said”. The idea was present right away, but now it’s about putting our all into practice.

“We had to be very creative the last few months but we’ve done it brilliantly.

Rangers can now wait and watch next month’s knockout round play-offs, knowing they will play either Bodo/Glimt, Anderlecht, Twente or Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce.

All will pose a challenge, but none will strike fear into Rangers ‘ hearts.

Only Tavernier and Leon Balogun, who are currently on the squad, significantly contributed to their successful 2022 penalty heartbreak victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.

That depicts how much Ibrox has changed in the last few years. The Europa League team does, however, appear to have muscle memory.

They will want to make a long run now that they have already played four of the top seven and haven’t lost to Lyon so far. No teams have dropped from the Champions League this year.

Additionally, they can now add Danilo and Ianis Hagi to their squad who were not initially registered, and they can also wait for some of their injured players to turn in.

After the game, McCausland was questioned about whether he believed they could succeed.

” Definitely, 100%, “was his reply.