Rangers enter tonight’s last Europa League league phase encounter knowing that they can still claim an automatic spot in the competition’s last 16.
Rangers now sit 13th in the table, which is enough to secure a seeded position in the play-off round. Philippe Clement’s men have 11 points.
However, with FCSB, Spurs, Anderlecht, and Lyon all on 14 points in the top eight and goal differentials fairly similar to Rangers’, the Ibrox team has a good chance of overtaking them to finish in one of those positions.
This evening at Ibrox, the Scottish Premiership giants will face Union Saint-Gilloise. They, too, have 11 points and an outside chance of finishing in the top eight.
How did that happen to the Rangers? Here are all the necessary details…
How can Rangers finish in the top-eight of the Europa League?
To get things started, they’d need to beat Union SG tonight.
This would put them on 14 points after eight matches, ensuring at least a seeded play-off spot.
What will happen next? They’ll need a lot of help in the other games because they have no control over it.
For begin, one of the aforementioned teams (FCSB, Spurs, Anderlecht, or Lyon) would have to lose.
FCSB will play Manchester United, Elfsborg will face Tottenham, Hoffenheim will play Anderlecht, and Ludogorets will host Lyon. The latter is the least likely to go Rangers’ way, as a three-goal swing is required.
Then there are the clubs that are currently ahead of Rangers in the Europa League standings.
Olympiacos and Viktoria Plzen have 12 points, while Bodo/Glimt and Galatasaray have 13.
The following permutations would assist Rangers advance up the table:
Galatasaray draws or loses to Ajax
Viktoria Plzen draws or loses to Athletic Bilbao.
Bodo/Gilmt draws or loses against Nice
Olympiacos draws or loses to Qarabag.
Essentially, if none of these clubs take up three points, Rangers’ chances of moving above of them in the standings improve due to their better goal difference.
What is the worst-case scenario for Rangers?
Rangers are guaranteed a playoff spot, so the worst-case scenario isn’t so horrible.
However, if some of the clubs in the standings below them win and Rangers lose to Union SG, they risk losing their play-off seeding.
In theory, this would result in a tougher tie for that round.
