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****The Official Villareal v's Rangers match thread****

LegendofCoop

By LegendofCoop
in Jimmy Bell's Kitroom

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gogzy

gogzy 31,195

Posted
Posted
6 minutes ago, GOAT said:

Wits the point in supporting Rangers if you think otherwise?

Exactly.  We can get a result.  We might end up not getting one, but to go in thinking we are already beat seems a bit stupid.

we are in the cup, we will have a chance as long as we remain in it.

 

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BlueMe

BlueMe 25,327

Posted
Posted

Good article and some nice words from Pablo Fornals-

 

Villarreal's Spanish international midfielder Pablo Fornals has huge respect for Rangers ahead of their Europa League showdown this week and insists he's ignoring the seedings which placed the Ibrox side in the bottom pot. 

Steven Gerrard's men travel to Spain to face Villarreal on Thursday at El Madrigal after they got past four punishing rounds to get into the Group Stages, eliminating Shkupi, Osijek, Maribor and FC Ufa along the way.

Villarreal emerged from a mini-crisis at the weekend with their first win of the season when they defeated Leganes in Madrid. Previously, they had collected just one point and scored only once in their three opening La Liga games.

Rangers were dumped into Pot Four for the draw, while Villarreal were top seeds when they were paired with each other, along with Rapid Vienna and Spartak Moscow.

Steven Gerrard's men travel to Spain to face Villarreal on Thursday at El Madrigal after they got past four punishing rounds to get into the Group Stages, eliminating Shkupi, Osijek, Maribor and FC Ufa along the way.

Villarreal emerged from a mini-crisis at the weekend with their first win of the season when they defeated Leganes in Madrid. Previously, they had collected just one point and scored only once in their three opening La Liga games.

Rangers were dumped into Pot Four for the draw, while Villarreal were top seeds when they were paired with each other, along with Rapid Vienna and Spartak Moscow.

But Fornals, who was capped by Spain as a 20-year-old, believes those seeding pots mean nothing and he expects Rangers to give them a tough test at their atmospheric stadium.

And he expects their win in the Spanish capital to help kickstart their season.

He said: "Rangers have a great history in football and it will be a test for us from the start, but all the games in the group will be difficult. All the teams involved have pedigree...us, Rangers, Rapid Vienna and Spartak Moscow.

"They are all big clubs and it’s impossible to say who is the favourites to qualify.

"Yes, we were the first seeds and Rangers were the fourth but there’s not a big difference between the clubs and Rangers have already had some good results in the competition.

"They are already in a routine of playing matches on Thursdays then going back to Scotland for their domestic competition.

"They have experience of playing games in Europe, going to places and getting good results, so we need to make sure they don’t get another this week.

"When we play Rangers we have to have the same intensity we had on Sunday against Leganes. We can’t go into the game feeling less than 100 per cent or not quite at it, because Rangers are going to be a very strong physical team and it will be a tough challenge for us.

"Winning the game on Sunday will help us. Although Leganes are bottom of La Liga it’s always difficult when you go there because the fans are very noisy. We weren’t at our best in the first-half but in the second-half we were much better.

"We scored our goal through Carlos Bacca and had chances to score more. I thought we played well, and of course we still have other players to come back into the team, like Santi Cazorla. He has a lot of experience which will be vital in the Europa League.

"Getting that first victory will let us go into Thursday’s match with a lot of confidence."

Fornals, who scored the winning goal this year against Real Madrid to give Villarreal their first ever win at the Bernabeu Stadium, is looking forward to playing against a team managed by Steven Gerrard. And he is expecting a special night at El Madrigal on Thursday.

He said: "I know Steven Gerrard is their new coach and he will want to continue the career he had as a player in coaching. He was one of the top players of his era and he has vast experience of being a winner. That’s what he will be trying to put into his players in Scotland.

"Playing in the Europa League will be a new experience for me and one I’m anticipating. I will be emotional because when El Madrigal is full on a European night, it is magical. I played in it a few times in last season’s Europa League and they were great experiences for me.

"The supporters come alive for European games. The atmosphere is different to how it is for La Liga matches. The fans remember the times when the team was reaching the later stages of European competitions and that’s what we want to bring back."

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Leeds_Bear

Leeds_Bear 8,110

Posted
Posted
10 hours ago, GOAT said:

Wits the point in supporting Rangers if you think otherwise?

Had a similar chat in another thread, it's the safe option mate. We win no one gives a fuck what anyone said before the game, we lose they can say I told you so. See it time and time again on here. 

Mon the Teds! I'm going 1-0, Katic header 78th minute.

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The Specky Forum Organiser

The Specky Forum Organiser 64,753

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, Leeds_Bear said:

Had a similar chat in another thread, it's the safe option mate. We win no one gives a fuck what anyone said before the game, we lose they can say I told you so. See it time and time again on here. 

Mon the Teds! I'm going 1-0, Katic header 78th minute.

The 3 people you were having that discussion with, not one of us would do that so that's absolute shite.

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OhW

OhW 4,669

Posted
Posted
11 hours ago, Professor_Chang said:

McGregor

Tav

Goldson

Katic

Barisic 

Coulibally

McCrorrie

Arfield

Candieas

Lafferty

Kent

I don't think Gerrard will throw McCrorie into this game. Too inexperienced. Maybe though.

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Leeds_Bear

Leeds_Bear 8,110

Posted
Posted
Just now, OhW said:

I don't think Gerrard will throw McCrorie into this game. Too inexperienced. Maybe though.

I'd also be surprised at this.

Reckon it will be Coulibally, Arfield and Ejaria. Ejaria will be suited to this game as he will have a little more time to put his foot on the ball. 

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