Linfield captain says his team beating Celtic would be a bigger shock than Rangers losing to Progres Niederkorn.
Linfield captain and self-confessed “huge Rangers fan”, Jamie Mulgrew, says that if his team beat Celtic in their Champions League qualification match it will be a bigger shock that Gers exiting the Europa League.
Rangers were knocked out of Europe’s secondary club competition in the first round of qualifying by Progres Niederkorn after a 2-1 aggregate defeat that manager Pedro Caixinha described afterwards as “the worst result of my managerial career”.
Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha before the match
Progres are a part-time team and finished fourth in Luxembourg’s top tier last season, but despite that Mulgrew thinks defeat for the Bhoys in Northern Ireland on Friday (July 14) would be even more embarrassing.
“It’s no secret I’m a huge Rangers fan. I was totally gobsmacked [by the result],” the midfielder told the Scottish Sun. “I didn’t think a result like that was possible.
“It just shows what can happen, but it would take something even more out of the ordinary for us to get close to Celtic.
“Being realistic we all know that is not going to happen.”
Celtic head to Windsor Park to take on the League of Ireland champions in the second qualification phase for the 2017/18 Champions League.
There are three rounds of qualifying before a playoff round played over two legs decides who enters the competition proper and the Scottish Premiership holders are the clear favourites to win this tie.
However, Mulgrew and his teammates effectively have nothing to lose in a match they are expected to be beaten heavily in and appear to be using Progres’ unlikely victory as inspiration.
Celtic Manager Brendon Rodgers
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