‘Nerves of steel’ – Former teammate blown away by ‘brave’ Rangers mainstay ahead of clash v Gala
Hugo Almeida has praised his former teammate Allan McGregor and has tipped him to be key for Rangers in this season’s Europa League campaign.
Almeida and McGregor were teammates at Besiktas during the Ibrox stopper’s time there in 2012/13, and the former forward has spoken about how he wishes they could have played together for longer.
The duo helped Besiktas to a third-placed finish in the Super Lig that season, with McGregor making 25 appearances in the league.
Speaking to the Scottish Sun, Almeida hailed his former colleague, and spoke of how he will be fired up for the match against Galatasaray, after their Besiktas side lost the Turkish title to them in 2013.
He said: “I loved my season with him and it was a shame I didn’t get to play with him for longer. I had played against him a few times before, so I knew about his qualities.
“Without a doubt he is one of the best goalkeepers I have worked with. He is a great shot-stopper and he is afraid of nothing. He was brave no matter the situation. That is such an important quality for a goalkeeper.
“But it was his nerves of steel that always impressed me most. We didn’t beat them [Galatasaray] that season and they went on to win the title, which was disappointing. As anyone who knows Allan will tell you, he doesn’t like losing, so he will be fired up for this game on Thursday.
“Rangers have enjoyed a good record in Europe over the past two seasons and a lot of that is down to the goalkeeper.”
How influential will McGregor be on Thursday?
As Almedia alludes to here, potentially very influential.
The veteran keeper is likely to start against the Turkish giants following his impressive performance in the last round of the qualification against Willem II.
That display saw him reintroduced for the Scottish Premiership tie against Motherwell on Sunday, and while Jon McLaughlin did well enough while acting as his deputy, there is still only one undisputed number one in Glasgow.
His outing against the Dutch club due massive praise from the likes of Billy Dodds and Kevin Thomson, and if he can produce a repeat performance on Thursday, it would be a huge boost for the Gers.
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