sport news Fireworks required on the road for Rangers after Champions League draw with PSV trends now
Long after the 2am disturbance outside PSV Eindhoven’s hotel, the fireworks were still popping in Glasgow.
A game bursting with compelling drama and sharp shifts in momentum lit up Ibrox before its conclusion left Rangers feeling somewhat singed.
Hope remains. For sure. But next week’s trip to the Netherlands will need to deliver the spectacular.
PSV Eindhoven will be full of confidence after holding Rangers to a draw at Ibrox Stadium
Ruud van Nistelrooy will feel brighter about the second leg in the Netherlands than compatriot Giovanni van Bronckhorst
At full-time, two Dutchmen shared a handshake on the touchline before considering respective returns to their homeland. There could be little question Ruud van Nistelrooy exited Ibrox feeling brighter about that prospect than Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
Van Nistelrooy’s side showed no effects of the attempt — apparently by some Rangers ultras — to disturb their sleep with pyrotechnics.
PSV went in front, lost their way for a spell and fell behind to a epic goalkeeping howler. Still, though, they summoned the energy required to claim an equaliser and tip the balance of this Champions League play-off in their favour.
And so to Eindhoven. The Philips Stadium is not Ibrox, but Van Nistelrooy has been bullish about the lift this 30,000-capacity arena can give his players. He points to the extra-time win over Monaco in the previous round as a prime example, arguing the passion from the stands was instrumental in pushing PSV over the line in a tie they looked set to lose with 70 minutes on the clock.
That was an admittedly huge victory but, while the head coach and some key players have since changed, their prior track record shouldn’t inspire despair on Rangers’ part.
Van Nistelrooy's side showed no effects of late night fireworks outside their Glasgow hotel
Last season, PSV lost at home to Monaco, drew with Real Sociedad and defeated Sturm Graz as they missed out on Europa League progression. A drop into the Conference League saw a win over Maccabi Tel Aviv and a draw with Copenhagen before Leicester City won in the Netherlands.
The counter-argument, of course, comes from Rangers’ own results away from Edmiston Drive. Away nights in Europe have been a mixed bag. If the incredible 4-2 thumping of Borussia Dortmund on their own manor was the undisputed high point under Van Bronckhorst, losing 2-0 to Union Saint-Gilloise earlier this month was easily the nadir. A non-performance, lacking in pretty much all the necessary ingredients, it was only rectified by a second leg comeback of historic proportions last week.
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