Tomas Soucek wants West Ham to face Rangers in all-British European clash
West Ham star Tomas Soucek is rooting for Rangers to make it through against Borussia Dortmund because he wants to face them in the next round.
The Czech Republic captain has had the luxury of watching the current round and has his eye on the Scottish champions for the Round of 16 as he is hoping for a clash between “big rivals’ England and Scotland.
Gers are currently 4-2 up on aggregate, having shocked opponents Dortmund in Germany last week, and are well positioned to make it into the draw for the next round while West Ham won their group and went straight into the hat.
Speaking to West Ham’s official website the 26-year-old said: “I’ve thought about a few teams I would like to play against, and if I could say one, it would be Rangers, because I want to play against them as a big rival.
“It could be a really good game for teams from England against Scotland, big rivals! It would be a really exciting game for the fans and also for us.
“This team could be good, but everyone we could draw at this stage of the competition will be difficult to face because they have had to win many games to go through.
“Let’s see – I look forward to it!”
Big occasion
There is no doubt that should the Light Blues finish the job against Dortmund tomorrow night a meeting with the Premier League side would be a massive tie.
Clashes between Scottish and English clubs haven’t come up so often in recent years but for two to be drawn against each other on the back of confidence-boosting runs in the competition would indeed be exciting for fans.
And Gers would surely fancy themselves to end the Hammers’ run and upset countryman David Moyes’ plans.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst will not be looking that far ahead however as there is the small task of the second-leg to navigate first.
Despite the glorious nature of the away win at the Signal Iduna Park he knows his side cannot be complacent at Ibrox.
Although they will be roared on by a supportive crowd in Glasgow, the visitors will still pose a significant danger.
Marco Roses’ team are sure not to underestimate their opponents a second time so it will be crucial that the home side produces a performance that goes some way towards matching the first leg to avoid a major anticlimax.
In other Rangers news, one BVB star has issued Gers a warning ahead of the return leg.