'Only a fool would write off Rangers in Europe'

[ASFN Admin]

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[BBC]

Rangers face what is pretty much a season-defining game when they take on Athletic Bilbao in the footballing cathedral of San Mames on Thursday night.

Only a fool would write off their chances of pulling off another European upset - and if they were to do so, reaching another Europa League semi-final would be a phenomenal achievement.

It would also give the club's power-brokers a real quandary over the next managerial appointment.

I suspect that when Barry Ferguson was asked to take the reins, it was very much an interim appointment, buying the board time to weigh up their options for next season while negotiating a takeover.

But while results and performances have been far from perfect since Ferguson came in, getting to the last four of a major European tournament would be a massive feather in his cap and an incredible addition to a managerial CV that was previously less than impressive.

On the flip side, I imagine failure to get beyond Athletic will make the board's decision a little more straight-forward, despite impressive victories over Fenerbahce and Celtic.

Either way, as was clear in the second-half performance at Pittodrie and indeed the first leg against Athletic, Ferguson has instilled a greater resilience in the squad and would no doubt back himself to make a decent fist of the job on a permanent basis with the support of new owners.

Interesting times, certainly, and a semi-final place against Manchester United or Lyon would make them all the more so.

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