Rangers know how it feels to be on the wrong end of a European humiliation.
Losing all six matches and conceding 22 goals along the way, Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s Rangers team made history for all the wrong reasons during a traumatic 2022 Champions League group-stage campaign.
Rangers lost 3-0 to Napoli, 4-0 to Ajax, and 7-1 at home to Liverpool, Van Bronckhorst losing his job just three weeks after Jurgen Klopp’s side ran riot on the blue side of Glasgow.
Now, it goes without saying that Brendan Rodgers will not suffer the same fate as the man now in the Besiktas hotseat. But Celtic’s own seven-goal battering – at the hands of a rampant Borussia Dortmund in midweek – will have made for joyous viewing from a Rangers perspective.
Especially as one the Gers’ former transfer targets found himself in the centre of a yellow-and-black maelstrom.
Former Rangers target Auston Trusty embarrassed in Celtic defeat
Celtic would have known that their task had become that little bit harder once Cameron Carter-Vickers, Rodgers’ stand-out centre-half, was ruled out for the trip to the Signal Iduna Park.
But surely even the most glass-half-empty Hoops supporter could not have imagined the embarrassment that would unfold without Carter-Vickers to keep the Celtic defence in line.
His replacement, Auston Trusty, has waited all his life for a Champions League debut. To say his dream turned into a nightmare – or that Trusty failed to live up to his surname – would be an understatement.
Now, the former Arsenal youngster was not solely responsible, of course. Much of the criticism has fallen upon Rodgers’ shoulders. A man who has suffered his fair share of European drubbings across two spells at Celtic left his side vulnerable to Dortmund’s rapid-fire transitions with a gameplan that could best be described as naive.
Rangers have frequently outperformed their Old Firm neighbours in continental competition in recent times. Philippe Clement, Steven Gerrard and [initially] Van Bronckhorst adopting a more pragmatic gameplan in order to better protect their backline against high-class opposition.
And Trusty, if he is to avoid being left so exposed again, may be privately hoping that Rodgers takes a leaf out of Rangers’ playbook when Celtic face off against RB Leipzig, Atalanta and co.
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Philippe Clement delighted by John Souttar and Robin Propper partnership
Celtic newbie Trusty was a Rangers target back in 2023, before the USA international completed his £5 million switch to Sheffield United.
Moving to Glasgow 12 months later down the line for a similar fee, this is certainly not the start Trusty would have been hoping for in green and white. He may have thought such defeats were behind him after Trusty escaped a Sheffield United side who suffered relegation during a dismal 2023/24 campaign.
Rangers, meanwhile, host Lyon in the Europa League on Thursday night with their own central defensive partnership enjoying a run of six clean sheets in seven matches.
And, between them, John Souttar and Robin Propper cost around £3.5 million less than Celtic eventually stumped up for one-time Ibrox target Trusty.
“It’s better and better,” Clement said at his pre-Lyon press conference, the Rangers boss lauding Souttar and Propper’s ever-growing understanding.
“We also have Leon Balogun still there who is excellent in his role, showing quality in training. We have Nana [Neraysho Kasanwirjo] who can play centre-back, or Dujon [Sterling].
“The [Propper and Souttar] partnership has been good. And it’s also important with new players, you create connections and a partnership so they can get to know each other.
“You can add [left-back] Jefte also in that way. Half of the defence is new. Our number six is new. So you need to find the balance which is better and better.
“What is true is if you take the lessons out of every debrief, and they are really hungry to get better, to make fewer mistakes. You see it’s positive we have four clean sheets in a row.”
