Rangers are in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar ahead of their Europa League Qualifying Round One tie.
The Gers are taking on St Joseph’s at 16:55 this afternoon [Tuesday].
It signals the clubs long-awaited return to competitive action, just shy of two months after the final fixture of the 2018/19 season.
On paper, this looks an extremely straightforward assignment. That’s because the opposition are the second-lowest-ranked team in the competition based on the UEFA coefficient [Kassiesa].
Yet, Steven Gerrard will know that teams are out to make life difficult in these early stages. Under Pedro Caixinha, Rangers found that out via a 2-1 aggregate defeat to Progres Niederkorn.
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Therefore, the current Gers boss is taking this first assignment very seriously. He’s named a strong extended squad for the game and predicts competitive debuts for multiple new signings.
Having landed in Gibraltar yesterday, the manager made his way to the venue, the Victoria Stadium.
He took the chance to assess the artificial pitch, a type of playing surface the Gers struggled on at times last season.
The setting is extremely picturesque though, and so the recce provided golden photo opportunities.
The official Rangers Twitter posted a picture of the manager posing pitchside in front of the iconic Rock of Gibraltar. It’s fair to say Bears went crazy for it.
Here’s a selection of reactions:
https://twitter.com/Glenman0989/status/1148354368741265409
https://twitter.com/thefragglerocks/status/1148375666020245505
https://twitter.com/realchrismunch/status/1148326450904408065
