Europa League: Can Rangers Hold Off the Yellow Tide?

Rangers vs Borussia Dortmund

We could be forgiven for thinking this fixture, Europa League: Rangers vs Dortmund, would be done and dusted in the first leg.  

But as the records show we were spectacularly wrong as the Scottish Premier League side stunned BVB with a 4-2 win at the Signal Iduna Stadium. And that tees up the second leg at Ibrox Stadium quite beautifully. The hosts, backed by a passionate blue army of fans are favourites to go through and the noise in the stadium will be deafening; but they face the most destructive attack in European football, one which can score goals at will and the Rangers vs Dortmund betting odds tell us we’re in for another dramatic night of Europa League football.

Can the Scots do it? Time will tell, but in the meantime lets have a look at how the two teams have reacted to last week’s drama.

Talking Points

Which Dortmund will show up in Glasgow?

After that humbling experience last week BVB tumbled down the favourites list for the eventual winners of the 2022 trophy. They are now at a price of 17.00 while Rangers have climbed to 31.00. It was one of the biggest upsets in European football for years but the tie is far from over as Marco Rose’s team showed at the weekend.   

BVB responded to defeat to the Gers by thrashing Borussia Monchengladbach 6-0 on Sunday in a match when skipper Marco Reus was simply sensational, scoring two goals and making three assists as die Schwarzgelben simply blew die Fohlen away. Monchengladbach have been in decent form but there was no way they could withstand the Yellow onslaught. Even without the injured Erling Braut Haaland the BVB attack can be devastating and, alongside Reus, Donyell Malen and Marius Wolf were on target against die Fohlen. Add in the creative talent of Thorgan Hazard, as well as Jude Bellingham and Raphael Guerreiro who both scored in the first leg, then this side has the ability to take any side apart.

But Dortmund are at odds of 3.27 to make it through and the reason for that is some wild inconsistency in recent weeks. They beat Hoffenhein away, lost 5-2 to Bayer Leverkusen and then beat Union Berlin before the mad seven days which have just passed.

In these last five games BVB have scored 16 goals, an average of just over three a game and that’s why this tie is in the balance.   

Attack the best form of defence for Rangers

Having watched Dortmund’s second half destruction of Borussia Monchengladbach on Sunday it might be reasonable to expect the Rangers vs Dortmund highlights to show 90 minutes of defence for the Scottish club, and at a price of 1.32 to advance the pressure might just have landed on the shoulders of the Gers.

So head coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst will tell his players to take this game on without fear, remember what they did in front of the Yellow Wall and see the job through. Nobody expected them to take the game to BVB but goals from skipper James Tavernier, striker Alfredo Morelos and John Lundstram gave them a 3-0 lead before a comeback from BVB cut the margin to two.

If Rangers can score just one goal on Thursday then Dortmund will need four and that might be the way the hosts can win. 

History

While Borussia Dortmund have the bigger names and are in a much tougher league, both teams have European pedigree. Rangers were UEFA Cup runners up in 2008 while BVB were runners up in 1993 and 2002, but die Schwarzgelben have enjoyed more high profile European success, winning the Champions League in 1997 and reaching the final in 2013.

Last week’s stunner in Dortmund was the first time these two teams have met and so we can’t say too much about psychological advantage. But in terms of recent form Rangers are unbeaten in five matches and are unbeaten in 16 games at the Ibrox Stadium; but their form has been patchy of late in the league. They come into this game on the back of a 1-1 draw with Dundee United, a result which leaves them trailing fierce rivals Celtic at the top of the Scottish League. 

Van Bronckhorst’s team has won just three of seven league games on returning from the winter break and that kind of form will give Marco Rose plenty of hope.

Betting Tip

	Rangers vs Borussia Dortmund	Borussia Dortmund Asian Handicap -1.00 @ 2.16
	February 25, 04:00 (GMT+8)

This is a great second leg for SBOTOP football fans to take in with the underdogs starting with the better hand. Rangers are at 4.36 to repeat their triumph of last week while Dortmund are at 1.68 to win this leg and the draw is at 3.59. It’s going to be a nail-biter; I think BVB will win the next 90 minutes but will they do enough to go through?

 

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