Rangers take on Malmo in the first fixture of the Europa League phase and it is a game that Philippe Clement will be wanting to win.
In the old format, the manager would probably have been content with a draw away from home, however, with a draw that features Man Utd, Tottenham Hotspur and two teams from France, every point against the other teams matter.
Against Malmo, Rangers record is less than impressive, and the Swede’s took great pleasure in reminding everyone.
Rangers have even more motivation for Malmo revenge
Malmo manager Henrick Rydstrom saw the funny side to the incident in which Rangers fans referred to their Europa League opponents as Danes and Norwegians following the Allsvenskan outfit’s trolling, as reported by BBC Sport:
“It’s never a bad thing to remind the opponent this happened before and it will probably happen again.
“I’m really sure that our video was a bit fun. And I think the responses are also with that spirit. That’s my experience with the Scottish supporters. A lot of passion, a lot of joy you can say, but also a fun part.
“I don’t see any problem with it. I think it’s really nice. I think the game is going to be intense and it’s going to be a really tough game.”
Rangers have three reasons to be motivated to beat Malmo.
This week’s post is a good place to start, however, the results in 2021/22 and 2011/12 had a seriously detrimental impact on the club.
Why Rangers have no excuses after previous Malmo flops
Qualifying for the Champions League in 2011/12 might have been enough to stave off administration, whilst in 2021/22, Steven Gerrard was unable to strengthen his squad and then Celtic took advantage of the automatic group stage place the following season by winning the league.
Both times Rangers have previously lost to Malmo, it has cost the Ibrox outfit a lot of money.
This time, the financial rewards aren’t quite as high, but three points on matchday one would go a long way towards helping qualify for the knockout stages, or at least the play-offs.
Rangers have seemed undercooked when the sides have met in the past.
Both encounters were in early Champions League qualifiers, this time, Philippe Clement’s team are warmed up and played enough games to be ready to go.
There also isn’t a lengthy injury list with the only serious problem being having Ridvan Yilmaz and Jefte unavailable, although Oscar Cortes being out is a blow.
Since the shambles at Parkhead, Rangers have recovered and form has improved, a win against Malmo would keep momentum rolling, and shut up their social media team.
