MY ACCOUNT
Rangers have made it through to the Champions League group stage for the first time in 12 years and they will get their campaign underway with a testing trip to the Johan Cruyff Arena to take on Ajax in Group A on Wednesday.
In a group that also contains Liverpool and Napoli, it could well be a baptism of fire for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side this season, but they have proven their credentials in Europe over recent times, not least their run to the Europa League final earlier this year.
The Gers have already knocked out one Dutch giant in this season’s competition, beating PSV Eindhoven in qualifying, but they will head into Wednesday’s game on the back of a confidence-sapping 4-0 defeat to Old Firm rivals Celtic in the Scottish Premiership.
Ajax have undergone a summer of transition following the departure of head coach Erik ten Hag and key players such as Antony, Lisandro Martinez and Sebastien Haller.
However, that does not look to have affected their form on the pitch, as they have opened the new campaign with five wins from five in the Eredivisie.
Team news
New Ajax head coach Alfred Schreuder has confirmed left-back Owen Wijndal will miss Wednesday’s match due to an ankle issue, while there are also concerns surrounding the fitness of midfielder Mohamed Ihattaren.
One man that is set to feature is defender Calvin Bassey, who Rangers sold to Ajax in a club-record transfer over the summer.
The Nigeria international had been a key figure for the Gers in their run to last season’s Europa League final.
As for Rangers, forward Tom Lawrence missed the weekend defeat to Celtic with a knee injury and Van Bronckhorst has confirmed the Welshman will be sidelined for a number of weeks.
Lawrence joins a growing injury list at Ibrox, with defenders Ben Davies, John Souttar and Filip Helander, midfielder Ianis Hagi and striker Kemar Roofe already on the treatment table.
The stats
This is the first time since the 2010-11 campaign that Rangers have qualified for the Champions League group stage.
That year they finished third in their group behind Manchester United and Valencia.
Ajax, meanwhile, are competing in the group stage for the fifth year in a row and they won all six of their matches at this stage of the competition last season.
The Amsterdam club also have a perfect record when facing Rangers, winning all four of the previous competitive meetings between the two sides, including both encounters during the 1996-97 Champions League group stage.
However, Rangers have won on their last two visits to the Netherlands, including the 1-0 victory against PSV at the Philips Stadion that booked their place in the group stage just two weeks ago.
Prediction
Despite losing several key players and their manager over recent months, Ajax have made a strong start to the season domestically and they look well placed to edge what should be a tight game against Rangers.
Rangers are capable of giving the very best teams a game on their day, but their performance in the Old Firm derby is a concern and they may come up short in Amsterdam.
Both sides have been amongst the goals so far this season, Ajax netting 16 in five league fixtures, while Rangers have scored in eight of their previous nine across all competitions.
Those figures hint at an entertaining encounter on Wednesday, with the home win and both teams to score a distinct possibility.
