Rangers won’t just be up against pressure and a long flight as an additional factor has emerged ahead of their trip to take on Alashkert.
The Gers will face the Armenian champions in Yerevan on Thursday knowing that only success will do.
Steven Gerrard’s side failed in Champions League qualifying against a determined but limited opponent in Malmö and then piled pressure onto themselves by only winning the first leg of their Europa League playoff 1-0.
A slip up in the former Soviet republic against a team ranked 150 places below them in the updated UEFA club coefficient – which would trigger a drop down into the Europa Conference League – is unthinkable.
The players will have to shake off what will be approximately six hours of flight time before the 20:00 (4pm BST) kick-off at the Alashkert Stadium.
However, they’ll also have to contend with an additional factor.
Extreme heat.
According to BBC Weather, temperatures are set to reach 35 degrees in Yerevan on Thursday with the hot conditions continuing into the evening.
With sunset to take place at 19:44, the temperature is expected to have dropped to 29 degrees by kick-off, but the players will have to warm up in sweltering 30 degrees plus.
Travel restrictions scuppered the club’s plans for a warm-weather pre-season training camp, so the players will definitely be taken out of their comfort zone.
Hydration will be key for the Gers throughout the trip and the fitness work done by the squad in the UK in July will need to kick in if progression is to be secured.
Confidence should be improved after a relatively comfortable 4-2 win over Ross County on Sunday and fans have lauded James Tavernier for what he did immediately after the game.
