Rangers vs Osijek: TV channel, live stream, squad news & preview
With a 1-0 lead to protect from the first leg, Steven Gerrard will be hopeful of his side taking another step towards the group stages in Glasgow
Rangers find themselves in a strong position to close out their Europa League second qualifying round tie with Osijek after claiming a 1-0 lead in Croatia last week.
Alfredo Morelos’ header gave Steven Gerrard’s side the victory seven days ago but their advantage remains a slender one.
This will be Gerrard’s fourth match in charge of the Gers, with the legendary Liverpool midfielder having enjoyed an undefeated start to life in the dugout after Shkupi were defeated 2-0 on aggregate in the previous round.
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Indeed, Rangers have yet to concede a goal this season, and should that statistic hold for their next 90 minutes, it will be sufficient to see them a step closer to the Europa League group phase.
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US) the game will be not be shown live on television, but it will be available to stream live online via Rangers’ in-house TV channel, Rangers TV.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on TV on Premier Sports and streamed on the Premier Player app.
Squads & Team News
New signing Scott Arfield is available to return after missing out last week, though Declan John, Lee Wallace, Graham Dorrans and Jordan Rossiter are all still missing
Umar Sadiq is unlikely to feature due to a lack of match readiness.
Fabio Cardoso, meanwhile, was released earlier this week to join Santa Clara in Portugal.
Potential Rangers XI: McGregor; Tavernier, Goldson, Katic, Flanagan; Coulibaly, McCrorie; Windass, Murphy, Kent; Morelos.
Striker Gabrijel Boban is again absent due to an ankle ligament injury, a huge blow to Osijek’s hopes given he was their outstanding player last season. Eros Grezda is also a long-term absentee up front, meaning Ezekiel Henty could be forced into a No.9 spot. Fellow attacker Muzafer Ejupi is ill and midfielder Dmytro Lepa is out.
Haris Hajradinovic was given only a cameo in the first leg due to injury but after scoring in a 4-1 win over Hadjuk Split at the weekend can expect to be in the starting XI at Ibrox.
Potential Osijek XI: Malenica; Grgic, Skoric, Guti, Barisic; Bockaj, Mudrazija, Kamenar, Hajradinovic; Maric, Henty
Betting & Match Odds
Rangers are odds-on favourites to win the game, with dabblebet offering a price of 5/6 on the Scottish side to come out on top. Osijek are given a 3/1 shot at winning the match, while a draw is priced at 12/5.
Click here to see all of dabblebet’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
Match Preview
Rangers’ 1-0 win in Croatia last week is not one that should be underestimated given Osijek’s strong performances in Europe last term, when they saw off PSV thanks to a couple of 1-0 victories.
And the Croatians remain bullish about their prospects of progress in the competition this time around, despite facing a marginal deficit.
Midfielder Robert Mudrazija was outspoken in his belief that his side were “better, stronger, more skilful and better organised” in the first leg and even had the audacity to call Steven Gerrard a “tiny man”.
While the Gers boss, who watched his side thump Wigan 3-0 in a weekend friendly, is insistent that does not give his team any extra impetus to impress at Ibrox, and holds the belief that they will go through.
“They need to forget about the scoreline and thinking they have an advantage, because they need to go toe-to-toe with this opposition. If we do and play to our level, I’m very confident we’ll get the right result,” he said.
Visiting boss Zoran Zekic, meanwhile, was content to quote Winston Churchill in his pre-match press conference: “Sometimes doing your best is not good enough. Sometimes you must do what is required.”
Rangers did just that a week ago and will be hopeful of doing the same at Ibrox.