An in-form Radamel Falcao is set to line up for Galatasaray against Rangers at Ibrox on Thursday night in a winner-takes-all Europa League qualifier.
The Gers booked their place in the play-off round with wins over Lincoln Red Imps and Willem II but now face their biggest challenge yet.
Galatasaray may not quite be the force they once were but the vastly experienced Fatih Terim has a number of high-quality players to call upon, with Falcao perhaps the biggest star in his squad.
The Colombia legend has won the Europa League twice and has represented some of the top clubs in world football, once commanding a £51m transfer fee when he moved from Atletico Madrid to Monaco in 2013 [Independent].
At 34, he may no longer have the same pace that helped him terrorise defenders earlier in his career, but his game is centred around his finishing ability and despite suffering several serious injuries in recent years, he certainly hasn’t lost his touch in front of goal.
Falcao has made a very strong start to the Turkish Super Lig season, scoring three times and notching an assist in his first three outings.
That means he’s directly contributed to all but one of Gala’s domestic goals to date.
The veteran forward has been rested by Terim for the club’s previous two qualifying fixtures against Neftchi Baku and Hadjuk Split, but he’s almost certain to start on Thursday night given that the Gers are much stronger opposition.
Rangers have only conceded three goals in eleven matches so far this season, with the defensive unit regularly praised for their efforts.
However, Falcao’s movement will present a much stiffer challenge to Connor Goldson and co. than they have faced either in domestic football or in the previous qualifiers.
Rangers will back themselves to score on home turf but the real challenge may be keeping Galatasaray’s star man and a dangerous former teammate of Steven Gerrard’s from getting in at the other end.
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