Rangers’ six potential opponents for the Europa League third qualifying round have been confirmed, should they defeat Lincoln Red Imps on 17 September.
The Gers got all the way to the Last 16 of the competition proper during the 2019/20 campaign but with single-leg ties in qualifying this time around, reaching the groups will be a tough ask.
Lincoln Red Imps was a kind second round draw. Yet, their win over Celtic on home soil in 2016 shows they can’t be taken lightly and there are stronger teams lying in wait should Gerrard’s men progress.
Here are the six clubs the Gers could face if they win in Gibraltar:
Progres Niederkorn (Luxembourg)
Progres need little introduction for Rangers fans. It was they who embarrassingly dumped Pedro Caixinha’s side out of Europe in 2017 before the Gers exacted some form of revenge by triumphing 2-0 on aggregate in the second qualifying round last season.
Roland Vrabec’s side defeated Zeta of Montenegro 3-0 in the first round last week but will be underdogs against Willem II.
Willem II (Netherlands)
Willem II were fifth in the Eredivisie when the Dutch football authorities brought the 2019/20 league campaign to a halt amid the global health crisis.
Their 14,700 capacity ground in Tilburg is hardly a great European fortress but they have arguably punched above their weight domestically in recent times and would present a challenge.
Rio Ave (Portugal)
Rio Ave finished fifth in the 2019/20 Primeira Liga campaign, behind two familiar foes for the Gers – Porto and Braga.
They have a squad packed full of Brazilian players and under manager, Mario Silva, are big favourites going into their tie against an inexperienced opponent.
Borac Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Borac only gained promotion from the second tier after the 2018/19 campaign, but impressively finished fourth on their return to the Bosnia and Herzegovina Premier League.
This is their first venture into European competition since the 2013/14 season, but they defeated Montenegrin club Sutjeska Niksic 1-0 in the first qualifying round.
Hammarby (Sweden)
Hammarby are one of the bigger clubs Rangers could face. They finished third in the 2019 edition of the Swedish Allsvenskan and play at the 33,000 capacity Tele2 Arena in Stockholm.
They reached the second round with a comfortable 3-0 win over Hungarian side Puskas Akademia.
Lech Poznan (Poland)
Lech Pozan’s supporters are well known for their antics in the stands, but their team are dangerous potential opponents.
After finishing second in the Polish Ekstraklasa, they defeated Valmiera FC of Latvia 3-0 in the first qualifying round.
