I understand this might seem an odd choice to consider Sasa as one of the greatest signings Rangers have made but hopefully, I can explain the reasoning behind my selection. He was signed from Austria Vienna in August 2006 and was brought in by new manager Paul Le Guen alongside Filip Sebo and Libor Sionko. Unfortunately for Le Guen, his time in Glasgow was short lived and not many plus points came from the Frenchman’s time with the Ibrox club.
Sasa was really the only positive to come from the ill-fated managers time with Rangers. It took a while for the Bosnian to make a significant impact in the team, with his first appearance coming as a substitute during a 2-1 defeat to Hibs. After the sacking of Le Guen, Walter Smith came back to the club at the start of the new year but Papac found it difficult to include himself into Walters selection and only played a handful of times in the coming months, but his sheer will and tenacity was proved when he started to feature in the latter quarter of the season playing at left- back, securing that position firmly as his own. Rumours circulated that the French club Saint Etienne were interested in acquiring his signature but decided to snub the club and continue his journey in Govan.
For me, Sasa was a commanding left-back that wasn’t shy in getting forward and he always seemed so calm when in and around the box for a defender. He had some fantastic performances and none more so when marking Lionel Messi in a clash at Ibrox vs the Catalan giants in the 2007-2008 Champions’ League group match, which resulted in the Argentine player claiming Rangers played anti-football, the game finished in a 0-0 draw with Papac receiving plaudits for keeping Messi as quiet as he did. In the same season, he was an ever-present member of a team that managed to secure a place in the UEFA Cup final against Zenit St. Petersburg in Manchester in 2008.
Sasa spent a total of six years with us and I still rate him as one of the best left-backs I’ve had the pleasure of watching at Ibrox, a true fan favourite and I will always look back at the turbulent time for the club when he was really the only redeeming factor of the Le Guen era. Unfortunately, Papac retired from football in 2012 due to never fully recovering from a groin injury, he managed to win three league titles, two Scottish Cups, three League Cups and played in a European final. While some may disagree with my choice as a greatest signing, I feel it’s truly justified by the character shown by him and his honours achieved with his time in Scotland.