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Nigel Spackman sends Ibrox warning for Braga ahead of Rangers Europa clash
Nigel Spackman has said that Giovanni van Bronckhorst must get his tactics right ahead of Rangers Europa League clash against Braga.
The Gers are trailing by 1-0 from the first leg, but Spackman feels that the Ibrox atmosphere can prove to be a huge factor in deciding the outcome of the game.
The Gers are heading into this game on the back of a 4-0 win against St Mirren where Kemar Roofe scored a hat-trick.
“They had a great win against St MIrren so you say, okay then a bit of confidence. With van Bronckhorst, he’s got to get it tactically right. That’s for sure,” said Spackman on talkSPORT, as relayed by Football Scotland.
“The big thing is when we used to play in Europe, especially away from home, we used to say ‘try and keep the crowd quiet for 20 minutes’. Keep the ball, kick it in the stand, do whatever you need to do to make sure you get past that 20 minutes.
“They will not have experienced a crowd like Ibrox on a Thursday night. It might be raining, floodlights on and the crowd will be right behind the Teddy Bears, that’s for sure.
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“They will be going for it and if Braga can keep Rangers out for 20 minutes then they have a chance but it’s a big, big test for them. I think Carvahal has already said that, he’s not looking forward to the atmosphere at Ibrox.”
Tactics
Spackman is spot on here. Obviously, there’s an advantage of playing the second leg at home, especially at a stadium like Ibrox that can produce an electrifying atmosphere.
We have seen in the previous round that West Ham come from behind to win against Sevilla at home.
Rangers have beaten the likes of Borussia Dortmund and Red Star Belgrade in their previous rounds, and those are better teams than Braga. So there’s every reason to believe that the Gers can pull off a victory here.
Van Bronckhorst’s side just need to believe in themselves and stick to their game plan. Ibrox can play its part but ultimately, it’s the players who have to deliver.
Van Bronckhorst must get his tactics spot on. In the first leg, he used Fashion Sakala upfront, a move that completely backfired.
Roofe is likely to start and Rangers must play to his strength. The big headache for the Dutchman is how will he shape his midfield especially with John Lundstram doubtful.
In other Rangers news, Charlie Nicholas has raged at some members of the Gers’ board while predicting the outcome of Thursday’s game against Braga.