When Rangers were linked with Xavi Simons not long after Giovanni van Bronckhorst arrived as manager, it seemed like a fantasy rumour that was unlikely to have any substance in it, however, when he later snubbed a contract extension to stay at Paris Saint Germain in favour of a permanent move to PSV Eindhoven, maybe our interest wasn’t as far fetched as first thought.
The 19-year old has three goals and two assists in just 212 minutes for his new club and it’s safe to assume that he will feature against Rangers at some point over the next two legs, one of many danger men in Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side.
Speaking ahead of the fixtures, Simons has obviously been keeping an eye on our exploits at Ibrox as he waxed lyrical about the trip to Glasgow, as reported by Football Scotland:
“I think we will play against 12 men against Rangers on Tuesday. The atmosphere there is really incredible. Our job is to be focused. I expect a good match.
“I have tried to do my best since I arrived and I hope I have contributed to our success. I was a substitute twice in the last round against Monaco and of course that is the manager’s decision.
“But I will try to take my chances whenever I am called upon. I want to enjoy my football.
“And I hope I have given the manager a difficult decision to make on Tuesday!”
It’s good to hear that opposition players are expecting a tough night and that Ibrox is becoming something of a reputation, if it gives us even an extra one or two percent then it has made a difference.
The Union Saint-Gilloise players made the mistake of talking down the atmosphere and then absolutely froze, but it looks as though the decibels will have to be ramped up to intimidate an entirely different calibre of player this time around.