Plenty of Rangers fans will have been hitting the Champions League draw simulator following their euphoric Eindhoven night. Like a kid on Christmas Eve, the excitement levels have reached fever pitch as they pick out the teams they’d like to face.
There’s so much to weigh up. The glamour trip. The easier (on paper at least) draw. All will be revealed when the draw takes place in Istanbul, the host city for this season’s final, but until then the Ibrox punters will be going through all the possibilities as their name goes in the hat alongside the cream of the continent for the first time in 12 years.
For Rangers, it’s all new after a lengthy absence following their journey back to the top. However, there was a spell when they were Champions League regulars and don’t forget they were involved in the inaugural competition which sees them represented on the official logo with the eight stars for the clubs who competed in that very first tournament.
There is also their recent Europa League success, reaching last season’s final, so they are no strangers to big European nights. And that is the thing for Rangers, and also Celtic who are also in the hat, is that these draws often throw up familiar opponents.
So if what if you want a draw that is completely different? Teams who have never visited Ibrox before, or at least not in recent years or in the Champions League proper. Here, Record Sport looks at the pots for the draw to pick out who might appeal to fans looking for a change.
POT 1 - Real Madrid
Considering the amount of times Rangers and Celtic have been in the Champions League it’s strange to think Los Blancos haven’t been to Glasgow. Their fierce rivals Barcelona have been to both Ibrox Stadium and Parkhead on numerous occasions in recent years but not the current champions. Carlo Ancelotti’s men would bring real glamour to the city. Rangers did play them in a pre-season friendly last season but you have to go back to 1963 for a competitive meeting which came in the European Cup with the Spaniards winning 6-0 at home and 1-0 in the return for a thumping aggregate win.
POT 2 - Liverpool
Rangers have never played the Merseyside giants in a competitive fixture - only friendly games, including a six-a-side tournament in Amsterdam in 1997. You can’t beat a cross-border clash in the Champions League with Rangers having taken on Manchester United the last time they were involved in the group stage.
POT 3 - Napoli
The Serie A side go into pot three and would present another unfamiliar test for Rangers. The Italians, managed by Luciano Spalletti, recent rise in European football coincided with the Ibrox side’s demise. A third-placed finish in Italy earned them their spot in the Champions League and with the southern Italians boasting the likes of Lorenzo Insigne in their squad, this would be a tie to get the juices flowing.
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