Lothar Matthaus takes bizarre swipe at Rangers after Borussia Dortmund EL exit
Former German player Lothar Matthaus suggests Rangers are a third-rate team after they knocked Borussia Dortmund out of the Europa League.
Last month, the Gers secured a famous 6-4 aggregate win over Dortmund to secure a passage into the last 16 of the Europa League knock-out rounds.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side earned a heroic 4-2 win away from home in the first leg and registered a 2-2 draw in the second leg at Ibrox.
Matthaus said, as quoted by The Daily Record: “Dortmund has achieved a very special treble this season of embarrassing cup disasters in the Champions League, DFB Cup and now the Europa League.
“The latest was losing to a third rate team, Glasgow Rangers, in the Europa League. Unbelievable.
“In Scotland by the way, Rangers are only second behind Celtic. And they managed to lose in Europe to the Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt.”
Sour grapes
What more can we say! He is a legendary figure, who holds the record for playing in more World Cup matches than anyone else, but the comments made lacked class.
While his frustrations are understandable with Dortmund being knocked out of the European competition, there’s no need to take a sly dig at other teams. It’s bizarre.
Rangers are traditionally one of the big clubs in the world and they have earned their right to be in the place they’re in – that is reaching the knock-out stages.
By branding the Gers as a “third-rate” side, he is insulting the competition as well. He spoke about Celtic but forgot to mention that the Bears won the Scottish Premiership last season.
His contempt towards Rangers are not only objectionable but smirks off snobbery.
Meanwhile, the Gers need to focus on what lies ahead. They are dropping too many points in the league, and that’s not acceptable.
In other Rangers news, the club may sign a Dutch int’l to replace Allan McGregor & his contract expires in the summer