Rangers vs Alashkert FC Preview

After crashing out of the UEFA Champions League, Rangers are now looking to play European football via another route. The Scottish champions welcome Armenian side Alashkert to Ibrox this Thursday for the first leg of the final qualification round of the UEFA Europa League.

Steven Gerrard’s side lost to Malmo in the Champions League qualifying round and will hope to avoid another embarrassing exit in Europe when they welcome their visitors.

However, they head into this tie with just one win from their last four games, a win which came in their last outing against Dunfermline in the Scottish Cup. That win would have boosted their confidence after going on a run of three straight losses and will help restore some self-belief in the squad as they look to book a place in the Europa League for another second season.

Alashkert meanwhile became the first-ever Armenian side to play in a European group stage after defeating Kairat Almaty 3-2 on aggregate in the last round of this tournament. That win guaranteed them a place in the group stage of the UEFA Conference League, meaning that whatever the result is, they will play European football next season.

However, they will also see this as an opportunity to make a statement and will hope to pick up a positive result when they travel to Glasgow this Thursday.