Rangers comfortably dispatched Hearts at Hampden on Sunday afternoon, setting up an Old Firm League Cup final and ensuring they carry momentum into Thursday night’s mouthwatering Europa League tie with Porto.
The Gers went toe-to-toe with the European heavyweights in Portugal ten days ago, proving there’s no gulf in quality between themselves and a side who reached the last eight of the Champions League last season.
Both sides are locked on four points from three matches heading into this week’s Ibrox showdown, and Porto’s weekend display should give the Gers yet more encouragement.
Sergio Conceicao’s side maintained second spot in the Primeira Liga, by defeating Aves 1-0 [Soccerway].
However, it wasn’t the most convincing of outings against a team with just three points from ten games and a woeful goal difference to their name.
Ivan Marcano opened the scoring with a superbly taken volley after 13 minutes, but the hosts were unable to put the game out of sight.
Their defensive record in the league is excellent, but the Gers know it’s breachable having scored and created multiple clear-cut chances at the Dragao.
Furthermore, it took a long-range strike from Luis Diaz to get through the Rangers defence last time around and having dealt with the threat of Moussa Marega and co. comfortably for most of that game, there’s no sign that the opposition’s other attackers are hitting top gear.
There’s no doubt that this week’s tie will provide a significant challenge, but it’s certainly winnable.
