Rangers are set to come up against Steven Gerrard’s former Liverpool teammate Ryan Babel on Thursday as Galatasaray head for Ibrox.
The Gers progressed to the final round of Europa League qualifying courtesy of an impressive 4-0 win over Willem II but they will need to produce another very strong display if they are to reach the group stages for the third consecutive season.
Galatasaray lie in wait and the Turkish giants are a stronger side than the likes of Ufa and Legia Warsaw, who the Gers have previously faced at this stage.
They reached the play-off round via a 2-0 win over Croatian side Hadjuk Split, with second-half goals coming from Younes Belhanda and Ryan Babel.
Rangers boss Gerrard has a good relationship with the Dutch international, who spent four years at Anfield between 2007 and 2011.
The then Liverpool captain said of Babel in 2008: “He’s got a bright future. He’s strong, quick, can set goals up and score. He’s got it all” [Goal.com].
“With so many players, they’ve had this ability and not taken it to the next level. It’s up to Ryan how much he wants to be one of the top players because he could be.”
Since then, the rapid winger hasn’t perhaps delivered to the level Gerrard expected but he has racked up over 60 caps for the Netherlands and played all over Europe, returning briefly to the Premier League with Fulham in 2019.
In May 2020, Babel said during a Sport Bible Q+A on Instagram that he would consider moving to Rangers due to Gerrard’s presence as manager.
He’ll be turning out for the opposition at Ibrox next Thursday, though, and his pace on the left wing will certainly test James Tavernier.
Babel’s tap-in against Hadjuk was his first goal of the season, but he also notched an assist off the bench last weekend in Gala’s impressive 2-0 away win over reigning Super Lig champions, Istanbul Basaksehir.
