Remembering Rangers’ Run to the 2022 Europa League Final

While Rangers ultimately fell at the final hurdle, the 2021-22 season delivered one of the club’s most memorable European campaigns in their long and storied history.

Going all the way to the Europa League final in Seville was a testament to the team’s resilience and tactical flexibility under former player Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

It also once again highlighted the unwavering support at Ibrox, which makes the iconic stadium such a fortress on major European nights.

Rangers have had little to celebrate domestically at the time of writing, as they currently sit third in the table and are all but out of the running for the title in the Scottish Premiership betting. However, they do hold a crucial top-16 place in the Europa League standings.

That said, it now seems like a good time to look back at their incredible run from two seasons ago, which saw them overcome managerial changes and make remarkable comebacks against the odds.

Qualifying phase

Rangers’ path to the final started as early as August 2021 in the qualifying phase, as they beat Armenian side Alashkert 1-0 on aggregate in the play-off round after dropping down to Europe’s secondary club competition after losing to Malmo in the third round of Champions League qualification.

Group stage

The Gers were drawn in Group A of the Europa League alongside French outfit Lyon, Danish side Brondby, and the Czech Republic’s Sparta Prague.

They got off to a difficult start under Steven Gerrard, losing to Lyon and Sparta Prague before picking up a crucial four points against Brondby with a win at Ibrox and a draw away from home.

Gerrard then departed for Aston Villa in November, with Van Bronckhorst drafted in. The Dutch coach guided Rangers out of the group in second place with a win over Sparta and a draw against Lyon.

Knockout round

Drawn against Borussia Dortmund in the first knockout round, the general consensus was this would be the end of Ranger’s European journey for the season, as the German giants were the heavy favourites in football betting.

However, the Gers caused an almighty upset in the first leg at Signal Iduna Park. James Tavernier, Alfredo Morelos, and John Lundstram fired the visitors into a 3-0 lead in Germany.

Jude Bellingham pulled one back for the hosts to give them a glimmer of hope, but a Dan-Axel Zagadou own goal restored Rangers’ three-goal before Raphael Guerreiro’s late striker made it 4-2.

The second leg ended 2-2 at Ibrox, sending the Gers through to the round of 16.

Round of 16

Rangers were paired with Red Star in the last 16, and the tie looked all but over when the Scottish side stormed to a 3-0 win in the first leg at Ibrox.

An early goal for the hosts in Belgrade made it look like there was still some life left in this matchup, but Ryan Kent made it 4-1 on aggregate in the second half and El Fardou Ben’s late goal was nothing more than a consolation.

Quarter-finals

Portuguese side Braga awaited Rangers in the quarter-finals, and Van Bronckhorst’s side had to turn around a 1-0 deficit at Ibrox after falling to a slender defeat in the first leg.

It didn’t take the Gers long to get back into the tie on home soil, as Tavernier scored just two minutes in, and the captain netted again from the penalty spot to make it 2-0 before half-time.

David Carmo’s late strike forced extra-time, but the roof came off Ibrox when Kemar Roofe tapped in from close range in the 101st minute.

Semi-finals

Much like their clash with BVB, Rangers were tipped to have reached the end of the road when they faced RB Leipzig in the last four.

With the first leg taking place at Red Bull Arena, the Gers set out to frustrate the hosts and looked to have completed the trick as the final whistle approached—only for Angelino to break the deadlock in the 85th minute.

The Rangers fans rallied around their side back at Ibrox, and Leipzig struggled to cope with the electric atmosphere as Tavernier and Glen Kamara made it 2-1 on aggregate.

Christopher Nkunku got the German side back on level terms in the second half, but Lundstram’s late goal sent Ibrox into raptures.

The final

Facing German opposition for the third time, Rangers went head-to-head with Eintracht Frankfurt at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium.

The opening 45 minutes was a tense affair, but the Gers fans started to dream of European success when Joe Aribo burst through and gave them the lead in the 57th minute.

Frankfurt got back into the final through Rafael Borre just over 10 minutes later, and the nervy game went all the way to penalties—where the German outfit won as loanee Aaron Ramsay missed the only spot-kick in a 6-5 loss.