Rangers: Steven Thompson urges Philippe Clement to start Dujon Sterling in showdown v Benfica
Steven Thompson believes Dujon Sterling could be the ideal man for Philippe Clement to start in the Rangers game against Benfica on Thursday (7 March).
Speaking on the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast on Thursday, the Sportscene host said it could be a good game against the Portuguese champions for the versatile 24-year-old, who has been playing in midfield lately, due to his physicality and athleticism.
He added that away ties in Europe are always “incredibly difficult”, but that you would fancy the Gers to beat pretty much anyone left in the Europa League at Ibrox ahead of their last-16 tie.
“We know he’s (Sterling) not a winger or a wide player in terms of a real attacking sense, but maybe it’s a good game to play him in that wide area just for a bit more of a defensive-minded player,” said Thompson. “He’s obviously very physical as well, very athletic, so maybe his legs will be required.
“Away ties in European football are just so incredibly difficult and obviously there’s a lot of pressure on Benfica to turn around this week that they’ve had and get a positive result, but for Rangers, it’s all about coming back to Ibrox in the tie.
“You would fancy Rangers at Ibrox in this competition, maybe not so much the Champions League, but in this competition, you would fancy them at home to beat virtually anybody that’s in it.”
Rangers need to stay in tie against Benfica
The most important thing for Rangers is that they are still in the tie once the two sides go head-to-head again at Ibrox on 14 March.
While Benfica suffered a 5-0 hammering against Porto on 3 March, they are still the league champions and possess an awful lot of quality.
They will want to put in a performance against the Gers to get their fans back onside and will be confident about their home record, having never lost a Europa League game at The Estadio da Luz.
Clement will be thinking long and hard about his team selection, but perhaps Sterling could be the ideal man to provide some more stability in midfield when they take to the field in Lisbon.
Although the Light Blues will know that they will have to defend well and chances could be at a premium, they should still be confident that they can pick up a positive result.
In other Rangers news, a journalist has mooted a potential Ibrox exit as the Gers look to kickstart their player-trading model.
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