Sparta Prague coach Brian Priske admits his side must be wary of the in-form Abdallah Sima ahead of Thursday’s UEFA Europa League group-stage meeting with Rangers in the Czech capital.
With a brace in Philippe Clement’s first game in the Ibrox dugout – Saturday’s 4-0 thumping of Hibernian – Abdallah Sima is playing his best, most consistent football, since bursting onto the scene at Sparta’s city rivals Slavia Prague over two years ago.
The Brighton loanee has nine goals since joining Rangers on loan over the summer. Six of those have come in the last four weeks, Sima netting in five successive matches.
Given his remarkable purple patch, and his past in Czech football, it should come as no surprise that Sima was the name on many people’s lips during Priske’s pre-match press conference.
Abdallah Sima in superb Rangers form
“It is important to realise that they have a new coach and partly also a new team,” Priske, the one-time Portsmouth ace, tells iSPORT.
“They played only one game (under Clement), and they won at the weekend. We are still a bit in the dark (with regards to) what changes they will make and how they will play.
“Anyway, the team is full of quality players. We know about Sima. We have to watch out for him. He is in form, he is scoring goals. But on the European stage, all positions matter. It will be a difficult match, but we believe in ourselves.”
Philippe Clement’s first European game in charge
Rangers defeated Real Betis in their opening group-stage fixture but then crashed to a dreadful loss at Aris Limassol last time out. Three points away at Sparta Prague would put Clement’s side one big step closer to knock-out stage football, though it remains to be seen if that Hibernian thrashing – Rangers’ most convincing display of the entire campaign – was merely a case of ‘new manager bounce’ or something concrete to build upon.
“We are here to perform well and play a great game,” Priske adds. “We know we have great fans. I want them to cheer us on and lift up our team.”
