Legia Warsaw vs Rangers Preview: Where to Watch, Live Stream, Kick Off Time & Team News
Rangers travel to the Polish Army Stadium to take on Legia Warsaw tomorrow night in the final round of Europa League qualification.
Steven Gerrard's side are within touching distance of European football this season, but they must first get through what is sure to be a hostile trip to the Polish capital.
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Legia Warsaw face their first real test of qualification and Rangers will have to become the first side to score against them in this year's competition if they want to progress.
Here's 90min's preview of this crucial contest for both sides.
Where to Watch
When is Kick Off? | Thursday 22 August |
What Time is Kick Off? | 17:00 (BST) |
Where is it Played? | Polish Army Stadium |
LiverpolTV Channel/Live Stream? | RangersTV |
Team News
The most notable absence for Rangers is £3.5m summer signing Filp Helander who, along with Greg Docherty, are ineligible for selection.
Legendary Liverpool midfielder Gerrard is expected to make wholesale changes to the side that beat East Fife 3-0 in the Betfred Cup on Sunday, and Alfredo Morelos is expected to start ahead of Jermain Defoe.
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Legia will be without centre forward Vamara Sanogo who has been out with a cruciate ligament rupture since July.
Predicted Linups
Legia Warsaw | Majecki; Lewczuk, Antolic, Gvilla, Rocha; Novikovas, Martins, Vesovic, Jedrzejczyk; Luquinhas, Kulenovic. |
Rangers | McGregor; Tavernier, Goldson, Katic, Flanagan; Jack; Davis, Aribo; Arfield, Morelos, Jones. |
Head to Head Record
Thursday's fixture will be the first time that these two clubs will have met.
Recent Form
Legia are yet to concede a goal in Europa League qualification against opposition from Gibraltar, Finland and Greece. They have faced criticism recently for drawing a number of domestic fixtures, and are currently eighth in Poland's Ekstraklasa.
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Rangers have made a strong start to the season, winning 6-1 against Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership and easing to victory against the challenging FC Midtjylland 7-3 on aggregate in the previous round of Europa League qualification.
Sunday's comfortable victory against East Fife should see 'Gers come into this one in high spirits.
Here's how both teams have performed in their last five games.
Legia Warsaw | Rangers |
Legia Warsaw 1-0 Zaglebie (18/8) | East Fife 0-3 Rangers (18/8) |
Astromitos 0-2 Legia Warsaw (14/8) | Rangers 3-1 FC Midtjylland (15/8) |
Legia Warsaw 0-0 Astromitos (8/8) | Rangers 6-1 Hibernian (11/8) |
Legia Warsaw 0-0 Slask (4/8) | FC Midtjylland 2-4 Rangers (8/8) |
KuPS 0-0 Legia Warsaw (1/8) | Kilmarnock 1-2 Rangers (4/8) |
Prediction
What will happen when high scoring Rangers come up against Legia Warsaw's perfect defensive record?
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Gerrard's side should expect a highly physical encounter, with Legia looking to disrupt their play as much as possible.
The Scottish heavyweights will have to maintain focus amidst an intense and fiery atmosphere created by the home crowd. Rangers should dominate possession but could be vulnerable on the counter - their mindset will be to at least earn a draw, but they could sneak a win to take back to Ibrox.
Prediction: Legia Warsaw 1-2 Rangers
