Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Graeme Young

Brian Laudrup reveals 'phenomenal' Rangers are causing a stir in Denmark as Euro heroics dispel Scottish cliche

Rangers icon Brian Laudrup has revealed his former team's efforts in the Europa League has led to Danish football fanatics rethinking Scottish football.

The wing king has been delighted with the Ibrox side's efforts as they stand 90 minutes away from the quarter finals.

Rangers lead Red Star Belgrade 3-0 from the first leg and are eyeing a blockbuster run that would emulate their heroics of 2008.

And Laudrup admits his former team are the talk of his homeland as supporters and media admit the current team are forcing a rethink over Scottish football.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, he said: "When I speak to football fans and journalists in Denmark, they ask me what is happening at Ibrox because, in the past, Rangers and Celtic were viewed as being good at home but they struggled away from home.

"Now Rangers are getting results away from home while playing attractive football. The biggest compliment you could pay them is that they are not grinding out results.

"They are achieving them by playing a phenomenal brand of football and people across Europe are taking notice of that. It's a great advert for Scottish football."

And Laudrup admits the displays in the knockout stages have given him a confidence surge and he sees no reason why his former team can't reach the Final in Seville.

The 50-year-old believes the squad has the quality to give fits to any sides who remain in the competition.

He added: "If Rangers do reach the quarterfinals of the Europa League, then I believe they have everything in their power to go all the way.

"They have a high-quality squad and it's clear that key players have found themselves again under Van Bronckhorst's stewardship.

"I'm thinking, in particular, about Alfredo Morelos, who is back to his best, and about Ryan Kent, who has been outstanding in recent weeks after coming back from injury. When Kent gets the ball, things happen for Rangers.

"Then there's Allan McGregor, who made perhaps the most important save of the season from Katai's penalty last Thursday night.

"McGregor has been under incredible pressure lately. When you're 40 and you make a mistake, people say you are too old. But the Rangers goalkeeper has shown that, if you can jump like that and make a save like that at 40, you are certainly capable of playing another year.

"Right now, the bottom line is that Rangers have all their prolific players performing to the very best of their ability.

"Yes, there are big teams still left in the competition. But if Rangers can get those big players to keep playing to the best of their ability at this stage of the season, and the team can play like they did against Borussia Dortmund and in that first leg against Red Star, then they have the quality to go all the way.

"You need luck, of course, and Rangers rode their luck at times in the first leg. But it was a solid performance and the best I have seen for a while.

Brian Laudrup (PA)

"Rangers have great quality and, if they can avoid injuries, I do think they have a chance of reaching another European final. My old club has travelled a long way in Europe under Steven Gerrard and now Van Bronckhorst, certainly since the days of losing to Progres Niederkorn of Luxembourg.

"In the past two or three years, Rangers have performed really well against good teams like Porto, Benfica, Galatasaray, Feyenoord and now Dortmund and Red Star."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.