The Europa League Final takes place between Rangers and Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville on Tuesday night and tens of thousands of Rangers fans are expected to arrive in the Southern Spanish city for the match. It will be the first time that the Gers will be taking part in a European final since defeat in the 2008 UEFA Cup final against Zenit St Petersburg in Manchester.
Unfortunately that match was marred by fan unrest in the aftermath, with fans criticised for their destructive behaviour in the aftermath of that defeat. It was a night descrbed by Judge Andrew Blake, of Manchester Crown Court, as “the worst night of violence and destruction suffered by Manchester city centre since the blitz.”.
This has led Rangers legends to speak up in order to avoid such scenes once again, with former players and notable pundits such as Graeme Souness and Ally McCoist issuing messages begging fans to behave themselves. In a video released on Twitter, Souness spoke to the 700k followers on Rangers' Twitter account.
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he said: "Hi guys, this is a message for everyone going to Seville. Go there, have a super time, support your team.", he added. 'Our team has done incredibly well in getting there, when you think the journey we've been on for the last 10 years to be now playing in a serious European cup final, it's a fantastic achievement. They've done their bit, now it's your turn.
'You have to turn up there, behave yourselves - have a party - but make sure you behave yourselves because you're going there as an ambassador for our football club, our great football club, the great Glasgow Rangers."
For McCoist, who managed the club after their administration enforced relegation to the Scottish League Two ten years ago, he will feel as much as anyone the importance of the fixture and also called upon fans to behave. He said: "This is a message to all the boys and girls travelling over to Seville to cheer on our team.
"It's a fantastic journey when you consider the journey we have been on in the last 10 years. It's absolutely remarkable from the lads getting to Seville.", he added. "Now that we are there, we want to enjoy it and I want you all to have a great time.
"But please, please, please behave. You are representing our great club and our country. Let's behave ourselves and do Rangers proud."
