ian1964

And was that not the case when the draw was made ?,don't know about you but when the draw was made I thought we'd be lucky to finnish 3rd,that's our first defeat in seven european games this season inclluding a draw against the mighty Barca at Ibrox

You can only do what you are allowed to do,Barca work very hard at closing players down,I can't believe you are taking this defeat so hard

The facts are we cannot compete with the likes of Barca,who are a tremendous side,other than deploying the tactics that WS went with,LYON !!!, I was happy that we put up a good performance and never got a real doing,not only do Barca rip teams up going at them,but they work so hard to defend as well with two or three men surrounding any player whos has the ball,IMO we got outclassed tonight with pure quality.

One thing's for sure,they are going to batter us for the first half hour,if we can hold out then I think we have got a chance and have a right go at them

He played well,as did the whole team,however the new Ronaldo HA!HA!,like Scot Brown is the new Gazza..............you've got to laugh,where were they when they took a battering @ IBROX ?

Barca Boss Rijkaard's Praise As He Plots To Down Ibrox Men FRANK RIJKAARD insists some of Walter Smith's Rangers team could play for Barcelona - he just wouldn't name any of them. The Primera Liga side's coach was full of praise for tonight's Champions League rivals and tried to play down Lionel Messi's "anti-football" jibe in the wake of the 0-0 draw at Ibrox two weeks ago. Rijkaard is the only Barcelona coach to have secured a competitive victory over a Scottish club in their last 12 attempts and the Dutchman is impressed with the mentality of our players. He is looking for his side to blitz Rangers from the start at the Nou Camp but isn't expecting an easy ride from Walter Smith's players. Rijkaard said: "Rangers have made a very good start to the Champions League. "They have been very impressive and they are doing a great job. They have some players who could join a team like Barcelona, I have no doubt about that. But I never talk about names." Asked whether he concurred with Messi's assertion that Rangers' tactics at Ibrox went against the ethos of how the game should be played, Rijkaard claimed the Argentine's words were taken out of context. He added: "Lionel was only saying it was very complicated for us because Rangers defended very well. "I personally don't use the expression anti-football. Football exists in many forms and every team has the right to play in a way that is best for them. "It will be difficult for us because Rangers are a good team and can defend very well with good quality players. "It is important for us to score early to try to make Rangers come out. We want a good result and we have to open the game because we know Rangers will close it. "It's not a case of scoring early then thinking of the league. "This is a difficult, complicated and interesting match for us." The Barca coach believes Scottish clubs' fine record against his team stems from being motivated to beat the best. He said: "Scots have a very good team spirit and mentality. They are highly motivated whenever they play Barcelona. "It's complicated playing against Scottish teams but against smaller sides they have to make the game and that is where they sometimes have problems." Barcelona skipper Carles Puyol has warned Rangers to expect the Catalans to go for the jugular right from the start tonight in the Group E showdown. The Spaniards are still seething at their failure to turn all their possession into three points at Ibrox a fortnight ago and fear Rangers will try to put up the shutters again at the Nou Camp. Spanish international defender Puyol believes the best way to force the Scots to open up is for Barca to score early - and he is predicting an all-out onslaught on Allan McGregor's goal right from the start. Puyol said: "We always want to win. If Rangers come here with a defensive game we will try to score as soon as possible. "We don't know how they will play but if it is defensive we will have to try to get a goal right from the beginning. "I hope it will be a good game. We have a good team and so do Glasgow Rangers. "They are a really physical side so we will have to battle. "We didn't score a goal in Glasgow and I hope it won't happen again. "In Glasgow we had a lot of good occasions to score but didn't put the ball in the net. "But we have high quality players and I think our strikers and other players are ready to have a very good game. "It's going to be a very important night. We are well aware of how important the three points are and hopefully everything will be fine."

Chelsea are a great price @ 6/5 to beat Shalke think i'll have a single bet on them,although I fancy Liverpool 2/7 doesn't entice me,and also you can't write off Celtic at home 10/11

Head-to-head The 0-0 draw in the reverse fixture on 23 October was the first time these two teams had ever met. European history Last season, FC Barcelona reached the last 16 and were beaten by Liverpool (1-2, 1-0). In 1992, they won the Champions Cup and in 2006 they lifted the Champions League trophy. In 2005-06, Rangers were the first Scottish club to survive the Champions League group phase, reaching the last 16. Current European form Barcelona are unbeaten in their four Champions League matches, keeping clean sheets in all four. They are yet to concede a goal in this season's Champions League. Arsenal are the only other team to have kept three clean sheets in this season's competition. Rangers are on the longest running unbeaten streak in the Champions League of nine matches. It's a run which started with six consecutive draws. They are also undefeated in four Champions League away matches. VfB Stuttgart are the only team to score against Rangers in seven matches of European competition this season. Player and disciplinary info Kevin Thomson (Rangers) is suspended. Team mate David Weir will be suspended if booked. Thierry Henry is Barcelona's most prolific CL striker with 43 goals. The Frenchman is fourth on the all-time top scorers list of the Champions League. If Barcelona's Bojan Krkic scores, he will become the youngest goal scorer in Champions League history (17 years and 71 days) Other miscellaneous facts Barcelona beat Real Betis 3-0 on Sunday, and are now second in the Primera Division, a point behind leaders Real Madrid. Rangers beat Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2-0 on Saturday, and are second in the SPL, three points behind leaders Celtic. Definitions of terms used:- Champions League (CL) - only group phase matches and beyond of this competition which began in 1992-93. Champions Cup/Champions League - all matches played since it began in 1955-56 including qualification matches. European matches - all matches played in the major European tournaments (Fairs Cup, Uefa Cup, Cup Winners' Cup, Champions Cup, Champions League). Uefa Super Cups, Intertoto Cups and the old Intercontinental Cup competition are excluded. Big Match Stats source: Infostrada Sports

Rangers V Barcelona: Countdown Thuram Is Braced For Another Torrid Battle WORLD Cup winner Lilian Thuram admits Barcelona's superstars fear they will be driven mad by Rangers' never-say-die approach in the Nou Camp. The French veteran is still smarting after dropping two Champions League points at Ibrox a fortnight ago. And he has warned his team-mates to brace themselves for another torrid and mentally draining 90 minutes against Walter Smith's battle hardened side. Thuram said: "Rangers showed at Ibrox they are strong. They just about drive you mad because of their pressure and the fact they never seem to give in. "Like Frank Rijkaard says, you should never underestimate any rival and must respect them - Rangers deserve our respect. "They were determined not to lose in Glasgow and fought for it in their special way. "You have to give them credit, though of course we want to beat them tomorrow." Thuram's concern was echoed by midfield linchpin Yaya Toure who expects the Ibrox men to offer monumental resistance as they attempt to stay on course for the knock-out stages. Toure said: "We'll have to give 200 per cent and can't take risks because Rangers can get you. "We must be focused, pass the ball well and be ready for a surprise attack any minute. "You can't make any mistakes against a side like Rangers and it's up to us not to. "Both teams know now what to expect from the other and that's good and bad at the same time." Barcelona warmed up for tomorrow night's showdown with a convincing 3-0 home romp over La Liga strugglers Real Betis that included two superb free-kicks from Ronaldinho. Keeper Victor Valdez believes the Brazilian's set piece specials might provide the key to unlocking Rangers' defence. Valdez said: "We are looking forward to the match. It's a challenge because we don't want another 0-0 but we know Rangers will be hard to beat. "They'll do a great job to avoid defeat and that's where Ronaldinho could be so important. His free-kicks are very difficult to stop. "He has so much quality and practises them all the time in training. I'm just happy he is on my side and I don't have to try to save them." Manager Rijkaard also believes Ronaldinho is getting back to his best after a recent slump in form. Rijkaard said: "He needed those goals. He is getting better every day and working hard, even looking to take people on again." And Barcelona striker Eidur Gudjohnsen insists his team can have no excuses should they fail for a second time to break Rangers down. The former Chelsea hitman said: "Hopefully we'll find the way to breach their defence. "You can't just say it's impossible or will be very hard, you have to go and do it. "Rangers will feel strong after their home win over Inverness." Barca president Joan Laporta, meanwhile, has hailed the imminent arrival of around 15,000 Gers fans as "incredible". Laporta said: "We have three important games coming up against Rangers, Getafe and Alcoyano in the Spanish Cup. "We have to win three in a row - or at least this is our wish. "Rangers will be a tough rival and will have big support. "The other day they told us the number of fans travelling to Barcelona and it's incredible - it's maybe better I don't release the number."

And I think I can guess who you were fishing for johnny boy :cheers:

Apologies Craig,I misread your post :cheers:

Not true Craig,as i've already said I think we can get a result,more likely to be a draw,but IMO WS will play the same 4-5-1 formation and try and hit them on the break,but in reality we shouldn't expect to go there and get a result,but I said the same when we went to Lyon :cheers:

:cheers: :cheers:

Aye,I heard the same rumour and it's supposed to happen sooner rather than later,Burns & Aitken to take over

Hope you had a bet on that scoreline my man :cheers:

I actually think we are capable of getting a draw over there

Kingston to join Rangers from Hearts !!!!

It's all about opinions Gribz,I happen to think Buffel is shite,Boyd gets far too much criticism IMO

If there is one player who deserves a new contract it's Nacho,he's still only 29 I think,his energy alone ups the pace in any game he plays in

You mean the four teams are at the same level

He brought in a 17 yer old left back against Lyon,made him captain in what was only his second first team game !!!!!!!!

I don't like the idea of a British team,I also don't like the idea of Scotland breaking away from the union,independance ?,not for me !!!!!

Is Faye not here on loan ?,I think he is and therefore we shouldn't play loan players ahead of our own players.

There's no doubt England have better players,BUT so do France and Lyon and Barca have better players than Rangers,doesn't make them a better team

I just hope that wee Rangers fans don't rise to his antics in future and just let him make a fool of himself at every opportunity and we can get a good laugh at him