Rangers are taking on Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Europa League knockout playoff on Thursday evening and a card-happy referee will be tasked with keeping a lid on things.
Signal Iduna Park won’t be anywhere near full due to restrictions in Germany, so the atmosphere won’t be as electric as usual.
However, there’ll still be plenty of adrenaline flowing through the Rangers players and two in particular have to tread carefully.
Alfredo Morelos and Fashion Sakala are both a booking away from a one-match ban.
Given that they’re in such precarious positions, it’s probably not great news that Clement Turpin has been named as the referee [UEFA].
The Frenchman has a World Cup, two European Championships and last season’s Europa League final on his CV.
However, it’s far to say that he doesn’t shy away from producing cards of either colour.
This season, he’s shown 69 yellow cards in 22 matches across all competitions and has sent off ten players, eight of whom were shown straight red cards [Transfermarkt].
He’s only taken charge of one 2021/22 Europa League fixture, in which he showed four yellow cards.
However, in the Champions League this season, he’s brandished 15 yellows, sent off four players and awarded one penalty in just four matches.
When the wheels came off for Rangers in the Europa League last season against Slavia Prague, ill-discipline was part of the problem and Turpin’s recent record suggests players on both sides will have to be ultra-disciplined.
Meanwhile, an untried teenager was spotted taking part in Rangers’ final pre-Dortmund training session.
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