Anders Christiansen hands Rangers potential boost ahead of Malmo clash
Malmo captain Anders Christiansen admits his side were tired in their last game and blamed the Swedish football authorities ahead of their clash with Rangers.
The 31-year-old didn’t hold back in his assessment of the Swedish football authorities and seemed to hint that Malmo lacked energy in their game against Halmstad.
This could be a big boost for the Gers ahead of the second leg at Ibrox on Tuesday as Rangers look to reach the Champions League group stages for the first time since the 2010/11 season [the Scottish Sun].
He said: “I don’t know if the people that run football here actually want Swedish teams in Europe.
“It’s just weird that we couldn’t have played on Friday night or earlier in the day on Saturday. It was also our third away game in a row in the league.
“I can tell you if you play every three days, there is a big difference between getting that extra day of rest. Making it four days between games is better for your body, and you recover quicker.
“We have lost two points, and that’s disappointing, but our energy levels suffered.”
Music to Rangers’ ears!
Christiansen certainly seems to suggest that he and his team were tired in their last match and must now travel over to Glasgow to face the Gers.
Rangers grabbed a very late goal at the end of the tie to give them something to build on in front of a full-capacity crowd at Ibrox [Rangers’ official website].
If Malmo are tired, we can imagine that the last thing that they will want to do is face a Rangers side backed by a full Ibrox.
The atmosphere really could be something special to behold on Tuesday, and you would imagine the crowd will pick up on any sense of weakness from Malmo.
Of course, this could just be mind games from Christiansen, but we doubt it, and we will be interested to see how they cope on Tuesday night.
It could turn out to be a very long night for Christiansen and his teammates if they are tired.
In other Rangers’ news, a journalist has revealed why one Gers players was missing on Saturday.