Rangers will be looking to avoid a Greek tragedy on Wednesday night as they travel to Athens to take on Panathinaikos in the second leg of their second-round Champions League qualifier.
Russell Martin took charge of his first competitive match as Rangers head coach last Tuesday night, and he got off to a winning start, defeating Panathinaikos 2-0 at Ibrox in the first leg of their second round Champions League qualifier.
After a ropey first half in which they had to rely on three or four terrific saves from goalkeeper Jack Butland, goals from youngster Findlay Curtis and new signing Djeidi Gassama give The Teddy Bears a two-goal advantage to take to the Greek capital on Wednesday.
After seeing their opponents go down to 10 men just before the hour mark, Gers fans would’ve hoped to have seen their side grab a third goal in the final quarter of an hour, meaning their side still has a bit of work to do to set up a tie with either Servette or Viktoria Plzen in the next round.
Neither club's domestic season has begun yet, but Rangers were in friendly action on Saturday, as they drew 2-2 with Middlesbrough at Ibrox on an afternoon where all three of my selections landed.
How the bookies view it: Gers favourites to progress
The bookmakers have installed Panathinaikos as favourites to win on the night, with BoyleSports pricing them at 7/10.
Rangers are 3/1 to win on the night, whilst a draw is 14/5, both with BoyleSports.
However, despite being underdogs on the night, Rangers are still favoured to progress, as they are just 2/11 to qualify at Bet365.
Head to head: Fond memories for the Bears
Prior to last week’s 2-0 victory at Ibrox in the first leg, these two clubs last crossed paths in the 2007/08 season, where Rangers made it all the way to the UEFA Cup final.
Following a goalless draw at Ibrox in the first leg, a late Nacho Novo equaliser in Greece in the second leg meant Rangers went through to the last-16 on away goals.
Players to watch: Curtis to continue his hot streak?
After a sticky first half, Boyhood Rangers fan Findlay Curtis changed the game for Rangers on Tuesday night, curling in a stunning strike from outside the box, before drawing a second yellow card from Panathinaikos defender Georgios Vagiannidis.
The youngster has also scored in both friendlies with Club Brugge and then Middlesbrough on Saturday, and is a massive 9/2 at BoyleSports to get on the scoresheet again.
Pana frontman Fotis Ioannidis is their main source for goals, with the Greek international scoring in four of Panathinaikos’s final six Conference League clashes last season. He is the favourite to score here, with BoyleSports chalking him up at 6/4.
Predicted line-ups:
Panathinaikos will be without their right back, Georgios Vagiannidis, after he was sent off following two yellow cards at Ibrox last Tuesday.
Russell Martin will be sweating on the availability of Hamza Igamane and new signing Thelo Aasgaard after the pair missed the friendly with Middlesbrough at the weekend, whilst the ex-Saints gaffer must decide whether to start with Danilo or Cyriel Dessers in the number nine position.
Panathinaikos: Dragowski, Jedvaj, Palmer-Brown, Touba, Kyriakopoulos, Chirvella, Bakasetas, Maksimovic, Pellistri, Duricic, Ioannidis
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, Souttar, Djiga, Aarons, Rothwell, Diomande, Raskin, Curtis, Gassama, Dessers
Anything else catch the eye?
With Panathinaikos two goals down, you would expect them to come out and make a fast start in front of their passionate home support.
Rui Vitoria’s men chalked up six corners in Glasgow last Tuesday, despite being down to 10 men for the final half hour, with four of them coming in the first half.
Therefore, I like the look of Over 6.5 Panathinaikos match corners at 5/6 and Over 3.5 first half corners at 5/4, both of which are at BoyleSports.
Somehow, the first leg only finished with two goals, and given the game state, you’d expect both teams to get chances, and I like the look of Over 2.5 Goals, which pays 4/5 at Bet365.
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