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Rangers’ one-team 0.5 UEFA salvage mission is on; don’t expect any favours or praise: view
Rangers have given Scotland’s UEFA coefficient fresh hope of an automatic Champions League place for 25/26 – but they may need to defeat Benfica to secure it.
The Ibrox side will be quietly confident of overcoming the Portuguese giants in Glasgow after a spirited 2-2 draw set up next week’s Europa League Round of 16 second leg perfectly.
But the positive result isn’t the only good news Rangers will be taking back to Scotland on a very positive night for the nation’s UEFA coefficient.
Should Rangers, who’ve flown the saltire on the European stage for last five or six years, progress against Benfica then once again the country could be celebrating a major win.
Champions League, UEFA coefficient, Rangers & Benfica
It all depends on how Rangers perform against the three Czech sides still in the competition, with retaining Scotland’s automatic Champions League looking an ominous task come the conclusion of the group stages.
But after Thursday night’s European games, the outcome is certainly looking much more favourable for Rangers and Scotland.
Whilst Rangers gained points for their draw with Benfica, Czech pair Sparta and Slavia Prague were beaten whilst the Eastern European nation’s third competitor Viktor Plzen drew in the Conference League.
As explained by ESPN journalist Dale Johnson, Scotland currently lead Czechia by 0.500 coefficient points with a defeat to Benfica, and Viktoria Plzen victory, likely to see Scotland lose the place.
Will Scottish football support it’s leading club?
Does this mean that the rest of Scottish football will cheering on Rangers in the Europa League against Benfica next week? We’ll crack the jokes.
Rangers have had little thanks for their immense contribution to the UEFA Coefficient in Scotland with the Ibrox club’s contribution ensuring an automatic place in the Champions League group stages for the Premiership winners for the last two seasons, and for next season.
Whilst there’s an argument that the club lost any bragging rights when we tamely surrendered the last two titles to Celtic, who’ve very much enjoyed the fruits of our labour, the impact on Scottish football has been huge.
Not only have Rangers had several extended forays into the Europa League, including the run to the 2022 Final, but both Rangers and Celtic qualified for the 2022/23 Champions League group stages.
This season Aberdeen enjoyed group stage Europa Conference League football courtesy of the improved coefficient, their first campaign since 07/08.
And yet, you can bet that outside of Ibrox there will be few on Scottish soil throwing their support behind Rangers as the Gers rise above the nation’s parochial nonsense to plant the St Andrews Cross on European soil.
Let’s just hope that if we secure another Champions League place, it’s us who get to use it.
