Leon Balogun ‘sorry’ over Celtic v Rangers answer live on Sky Sports
Leon Balogun issued a jokey apology after issuing his thoughts on a huge week for Rangers both domestically and in Europe.
Rangers emerged as victors in Istanbul as they defeated Mourinho’s Fenerbahce 3-1 thanks to goals from Cyriel Dessers and Vaclav Cerny in the first leg of the Europa League round-of-16 tie.
The Scottish giants have one foot in the quarterfinals of the Europa League thanks to their win, but work is not done yet as they welcome Fenerbahce to Ibrox on Thursday (13 March).
A win for Barry Ferguson’s side will help them salvage something of their season as they have miserably failed in challenging Celtic for the Scottish Premiership title.
Rangers look to eliminate the Special One
Rangers handed a shock defeat to Mourinho and Fenerbahce in their own backyard and are now looking to rub salt to their wounds with a comprehensive win in the second leg too.
However, it won’t be an easy task as the former Chelsea manager has engineered some amazing comebacks over the years as a manager.
After taking on Fenerbahce, the Light Blues will face their arch-rivals Celtic, but at this point their focus is to go toe-to-toe with Mourinho’s Fenerbahce.
Even though the former Tottenham manager is capable of masterminding comebacks, Rangers defender Balogun is confident that Rangers can contend the Turkish giants and neutralise Mourinho’s plans.
And he is refusing to look ahead to that Old Firm showdown until the Fenerbahce game is out the way with.
| Opposition | Home/Away |
| Fenerbahce | Home |
| Celtic | Away |
| Dundee FC | Away |
| Hibernian | Home |
He told Sky Sports [10 March]: “It’s a big week with two perfect fixtures. Obviously Fenerbahce is first up and we had a very good result over there. But we’re going against the Special One with some very good players and I think it’s far from over.
“Right now the main focus is getting through to the next round in Europe, therefore we have to focus on Fenerbahce. I’m sorry to be boring.
“It was a really good result and performance. But like I said, this is Mourinho and I’m sure he will have a few tricks up his sleeve. He wouldn’t have been happy at all after the tie over there.
“But I think there’s a lot of confidence for us to take and we can probably up our game in terms of on the ball.”
Rangers’ next manager?
The Light Blues sacked Philippe Clement in February following a dismal run this season that saw them lose pace to Celtic in the Premiership race. Rangers are currently 16 points behind Celtic and have no chance of bridging the gap.
Ferguson has taken over the managerial role in the interim and has guided the Gers to two wins in three games. The Europa League tie was a litmus test and Ferguson has so far impressed with his on-field tactics and presence in the dugout.
Former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has been linked with the job at Ibrox, while there are other names floated too with the gig.
With Rangers heading for a takeover as 49ers Enterprises aim to buy a controlling stake in the club, the managerial decision may be delayed until the new owners arrive at the club.
As is often the case, the new owners will likely want to have a say in the new managerial appointment.