Steven Gerrard urges Rangers to be brave against Feyenoord
Wednesday 27 November 2019 19:21, UK
Steven Gerrard has urged his players to be "brave" when they take on Feyenoord in Rotterdam, with a spot in the last 32 of the Europa League at stake.
The Ibrox outfit are looking for the result that will extend their European campaign into the knockout stages for the first time in nine years.
But Gers boss Gerrard knows it will be no easy task on Thursday night as his team prepare to walk out in front of the notoriously noisy crowd at the Dutch giants' famous 51,000-seater home.
Rangers have already survived trips to Legia Warsaw and Porto this season and Gerrard admits it will take another show of bravery to see them follow Celtic into the last 32.
He said: "I'm going to need the players to be brave. I need players who can handle the atmosphere, certainly early on.
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"It's the reason why I rested Steve Davis at the weekend, so he could be fresh. I need big players with character and bravery. They need to stand up and be counted.
"We've certainly rehearsed this type of challenge. We took on Legia in front of an incredible atmosphere and stood up and were brave in front of a hostile arena.
"But I'm still going to need players to perform. I need my attacking players to provide big moments for us. We're going to have to stick together because we're aware this is a lot tougher than the task we faced at Ibrox."
Gerrard has already seen his side get the better of Feyenoord in their group opener, with Sheyi Ojo's strike sealing a 1-0 Ibrox win.
That defeat sparked a woeful run of results that eventually cost Jaap Stam his job and it will be former Rangers boss Dick Advocaat in the opposite dugout this time.
Gerrard reckons the 72-year-old has already filled the gaps his side were able to exploit back in September.
"Dick is a manager who has been at this level for many, many years," he said. "I've got an incredible amount of respect for him. He has big experiences throughout Europe.
"A manager like that will always give a team a lift, will improve certain things.
"I'm sure he could look in at Feyenoord and see where things were going wrong and I've noticed that he's tweaked those areas already having studied their recent performances.
"It will be a more difficult challenge than at Ibrox."
