Rangers were drawn against Portuguese side Braga in the Europa League quarter-final draw that took place yesterday, with a place in the semi-finals up for grabs.
Whoever wins the tie will take on either Atalanta or RB Leipzig for a final spot and with West Ham, Lyon, and Barcelona all on the other side of the draw, it represents a fantastic opportunity to get to a European final.
Braga boss Carlos Carvalhal will be aiming to upset the apple cart as the first leg approaches.
“It’s amazing. We are the youngest team in the competition, some boys are just 17-18,” said Carvalhal [DailyRecord].
“To play against Rangers is a big target for us in the last eight.
“But we have some expectations. I believe in this moment of the competition all the teams are 50/50.
“We believe we can go to the next phase.”
Rangers face a tough task against Braga in Europa League Quarter-final tie
Who can forget the last time the two sides met in the Europa League? February 2020, just before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down the world and Braga were leading 2-0 at Ibrox before a remarkable turnaround happened.
Hagi and Aribo both scored to draw the sides level before a deflected Hagi freekick gave the Ibrox side a narrow win and we went on to defeat the side 1-0 away from home to secure progression.
A similar fate would be enough for the Rangers faithful, although going two goals down at home might be tough to go through again.
Braga will be aiming to repeat history and reach the final, they last did that in 2011 losing to a talented Porto side and Rangers can’t take anything for granted as history beckons.
