Ange Postecoglou returns to enemy territory as Rangers host Tottenham, as the two teams sit level on points in the Europa League standings.
Philippe Clement seems to have turned a corner after a raft of criticism directed towards him following a 1-1 draw against Dundee United in late November. That defeat put a massive dent on their title hopes, although Rangers have since turned things around with four wins in a row in all competitions.
That included a thrashing of OGC Nice 4-1 reverse in the previous matchday, and they have since recorded three wins over St, Johnstone, Kilmarnock, and Ross County, scoring 10 goals in the process and conceding none. Hence, they could head into the home clash with Tottenham full of confidence, as they still have a fight on their hands in the Europa League.
Rangers are currently part of the top eight in the UEFA Europa League standings, and a win over Tottenham will consolidate their place until the next matchday. The two teams are level on points, with Clement’s side slightly ahead on goal difference.
Tottenham are in a difficult place amid their faltering performances of late, the latest being a big home loss to Chelsea at the weekend. Spurs took a stunning two-goal lead in that game through Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski. Chelsea responded quickly with a Jadon Sancho strike, which effectively turned the game towards the Blues.
Chelsea then responded with three second-half goals, as Enzo Fernandez’s strike sandwiched between two Cole Palmer penalties sealing the points for Enzo Maresca’s side. A late Son Heung-min strike proved too late to stage a comeback. The pressure is back on Ange Postecoglou, as Spurs are winless in the four games in all competitions since that stunning victory away to Manchester City.
Postecoglou now returns to enemy territory as Rangers fans will certainly give him a hostile reception when the former Celtic boss takes his Tottenham side to Ibrox. As for the game, this is a big test for Tottenham to cement their credentials in the Europa League, as a win would take them above Rangers in the standings, where they are only out of the top eight on goal difference.
Team News & Tactics
Rangers
Philippe Clement does have a few problems, as Neraysho Kasanwirjo, Oscar Cortes, and Tom Lawrence are all out of this contest against Spurs. The latter duo have failed to shake off knocks, and could sit on the sidelines. Rabbi Matondo has returned to full training, although there are big doubts about whether he’s ready to take the pitch so soon, as it may take a while for him to get up to speed.
Going back to Motondo, Rangers have missed him, but the form of Hamza Igamane with four goals has smoothened things for the Ibrox outfit, as he is in line to start against Spurs. Clement will be able to name a strong starting lineup for this clash, as a back four of James Tavernier, John Souttar, Robin Propper, and Jefte will play ahead of keeper Jack Butland.
Connor Barron and Nicolas Raskin will take their midfield positions, with Mohamed Diomande in the attacking midfield role. With four goals in recent games, Igamane will take the role on the left wing, while Vaclav Cerny features on the right, as Danilo leads the line for Rangers.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Butland; Tavernier, Souttar, Propper, Jefte; Barron, Raskin; Cerny, Diomande, Igamane; Danilo
Tottenham Hotspur
The game against Chelsea saw Ange Postecoglou seemingly taking a risk with some of his key players, and he might have rushed back main defenders Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven. The former suffered a fresh injury to his quad, while the latter went down in the second half with another hamstring problem.
Hence, the duo is not expected to take any part in this visit to Ibrox, as Postecoglou could once again use Archie Gray and Radu Dragusin as his central defenders. Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie are the preferred personnel in the full-back roles.
There are further absentees for Postecoglou to contend with, as Ben Davies, Wilson Odobert, Mikey Moore, and Richarlison are all unavailable. There is a doubt regarding Brennan Johnson after he was taken off in the last game with an illness, although the winger would be expected to feature.
One player who could return to the lineup is Rodrigo Bentancur, as his seven-game FA ban does not apply to European games. The Uruguayan international will start alongside Yves Bissouma, who will be suspended for the next domestic game.
Dejan Kulusevski could move further up the pitch to replace Johnson on the right wing, while Timo Werner could get a start on the right, while Will Lankshear is likely to lead the line for Tottenham against Rangers.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Forster; Porro, Gray, Dragusin, Udogie; Bentancur, Bissouma, Maddison; Kulusevski, Lankshear, Werner
Key Stats
Rangers are unbeaten in eight games across all competitions.
Rangers have won their last four games across all competitions.
Rangers are sitting one place above Tottenham in the Europa League standings due to their superior goal difference.
Tottenham are winless in their last four games across all competitions.
Tottenham have one win in their last seven games across all competitions.
Player to Watch
Rodrigo Bentancur
Embed from Getty Images
This will be the time to use the Uruguayan extensively as Bentancur is not available for domestic games for the time being. The midfielder might be seen as someone to bring about a change in their otherwise abject midfield that featured against Chelsea.
Bentancur can provide the dynamism lacking in Tottenham’s midfield and could be a welcome addition as far as Ange Postecoglou is concerned. The Tottenham manager might rely on the Uruguayan’s experience, as he would target climbing up the table further with a win over Rangers.
Prediction
Rangers 3-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham are not lacking in goalscoring numbers, and even though Ange Postecoglou might make a lot of changes, with some of those enforced ones, there are doubts about whether they can take three points. Their current form and loss of a key defensive duo at the back point at going a third Europa League game without a win.
Rangers, on the other hand, are coming into this one in contrasting form compared to Tottenham and also have a home advantage on Thursday. Clement has the player in a good vein of form, which could see them nick the three points at Ibrox against Spurs.