Glasgow Rangers will be hoping to secure a positive result at Ibrox and move closer to the group-stages of the Europa League.
Rangers should be heavy favourites to book their place in the third qualifying round of the Europa League heading into the second-leg of their tie with Croatian side Osijek, but Steven Gerrard will certainly not be getting carried away ahead of Thursday’s clash at Ibrox.
Alfredo Morelos scored the only goal as the Light Blues won the first-leg 1-0 one week ago. The Gers go into the rematch off the back of a 3-0 win over Wigan Athletic at the weekend which saw Gerrard’s men pick up the pace significantly after the break following an underwhelming first-half performance.
Gerrard will be reminding his side that he wishes to see that lethal display from the off against Osijek, and will undoubtedly pick as strong a team as possible in the hope that they can keep the momentum rolling going into Sunday’s Scottish Premiership curtain-raiser with Aberdeen.
The back five seems to pick itself at the moment. Allan McGregor and Connor Goldson in particular have been incredible signings thus far, while neither Jon Flanagan or Nikola Katic have let the side down since their arrivals. James Tavernier also looks to be edging back towards his best.
Similarly, Morelos appears to be finding some form after a difficult start to pre-season and thus, predicting that he will be leading the line appears to be one of the safest bets.
There may be a change in midfield. Scott Arfield returned to the fold as a substitute against Wigan following injury so perhaps he may come back into the starting lineup at the expense of Ryan Jack, with Ovie Ejaria keeping his spot in the middle of the park.
With that in mind, here is a look at how Gerrard’s Rangers may line up for Thursday’s second-leg…
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