Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has been speaking about the fact there will be no fans in the Estadio de Luz as the Gers face off against Portuguese giants Benfica.
Benfica coach Jorge Jesus had pleaded with authorities to open the gates of the famous stadium to 20,000 supporters for the visit of Rangers.
But after lockdown restrictions were tightened in Portugal Benfica won’t even have the near 5000 supporters in the ground who watched them thump Standard Liege 3-0 [Scottish Sun].
Rangers boss Steven Gerrard described the ground as a “world-class stadium” and said both he and his players are “gutted” it won’t be a full house.
“The players are having a look round at where they are going to be playing tomorrow. I think you’ve got to use that as motivation,” said Gerrard [Rangers].
“It’s a world-class stadium, a fantastic place to play.
“The pitch is in great shape. These are the places you want to come and play.
“It’s a great shame, all of the players and myself are gutted it’s not going to be a full house because it’s a wonderful place to come and play football.
“It is what it is. We’re used to playing behind closed doors now. I don’t think it’s going to change any time soon. Certainly in the near future. We just have to get on with it.
“But we’ve just had a walk around the place and it’s a fabulous place to test ourselves.”
Rangers and Benfica go into this match having both won their opening two matches against Belgian side Standard Liege and Polish outfit Lech Poznan
Having spent close to £90m in a huge summer of recruitment, the Portuguese giants will almost certainly pose Rangers’ biggest test of the season so far.
Receive a digest of our best Rangers content each week direct to your mailbox
