Rangers travel to İstanbul on Thursday evening for the first leg of their UEFA Europa League Round of 16 tie against Turkish giants, Fenerbahçe SK.
Managed by footballing icon José Mourinho, Fener currently sit 2nd in the Turkish Süper Lig, trailing rivals Galatasaray (who are unbeaten in league action) by 4 points. The 19-time Turkish champions finished 24th in the league phase of the Europa League, meaning that they had to overcome a two-legged play-off against Belgian outfit RSC Anderlecht (5-2 agg.) for the right to square off against Rangers.
Rangers qualified automatically for this stage after finishing in 8th spot in the newly revamped league phase. Wins over Malmö, FCSB, Nice and Union Saint-Gilloise helped the Glasgow giants avoid the knockout play-off stage, finishing above European heavyweights such as Ajax, Roma & Porto in the process.
The sides have met previously, with Fenerbahçe prevailing in a two-legged Champions League qualifier back in August 2001. It ended goalless in the first leg at Ibrox, before a blockbuster return leg. The Turkish side prevailed on home soil, winning 2-1 thanks to goals from Haim Revivo and Serhat Akin before Fernando Ricksen pulled one back for the Light Blues late on.
Tonight’s opening leg kicks off at 5:45pm (GMT) at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium. While the second leg will be played at Ibrox Stadium on Thursday 13th March, 8:00pm (GMT).
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