Rangers face Servette in the final Champions League qualifying round before a potential play-off tie with PSV Eindhoven or Sturm Graz.
For once, the Light Blues are in decent shape in terms of injuries, however, Servette are having a similar problem to the one that we endured last season.
The Swiss outfit will have eight players missing including their captain and several key figures putting Rangers in pole position to see off Servette, as reported by The Rangers Review.
Rangers Champions League boost as Servette struggle with absentees
The players missing are Alexis Antunes, Enzo Crivelli, skipper Jeremy Frick, Alexander Lyng, Theo Magnin, Gael Ondoua, Miroslav Stevanovic and Keigo Tsunemoto.
Manager Rene Weiler was quick to play down the issue:
“It’s clear these players are important for us but I don’t want to spend much time talking about players who can’t play.
‘I want to focus on the players who are capable of playing.
“It’s a big challenge.
“They’re a very good club with a lot of tradition and success and it’s just a year ago they reached the final of the Europa Cup.
“It will be quite hard especially because they lost their first game so we expect a big reaction at home.
“We have to deliver an excellent performance when you’re playing a game like this.”
Rangers have to take full advantage of Servette’s problems with so much at stake in the Champions League and go with an aggressive line-up.
There are no easy games but rarely do teams have such a lengthy injury list, especially one that includes key players.
Footballers are only human and, if Rangers can apply immediate pressure to Servette, an early advantage could be taken to Switzerland.
They will know that they aren’t at full strength and will be hoping to keep it tight and take a result home.
A quick goal or two could knock the wind out their sails.
Michael Beale promised Rangers fans that he would play on the front foot and, after Saturday’s shambles, he won’t have a better chance to put his plan into action.
