Scottish Premiership side Rangers host Union Saint-Gilloise in the Europa League on Thursday, and we’ve got the latest team news and predicted lineups included in our preview ahead of the action.
Rangers vs Union Saint-Gilloise Preview
With both sides already assured of advancing to the knockout phase play-offs at a minimum, Scottish Premiership side Rangers host Union Saint-Gilloise on the final matchday of the Europa League league phase.
The pair are level on points heading into the final round of fixtures, on 11 apiece, with the ‘Gers occupying 13th place in the table, while their Belgian counterparts are two positions behind in 15th place.
In order to break into the top eight and secure direct qualification for the round of 16, both Rangers and USG need a victory at Ibrox on Thursday and need several sides placed between fifth and 14th to suffer defeats.
Last time out, the ‘Gers suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat away at Premier League side Manchester United, but they have since bounced back with a 3-1 comeback victory over Dundee United on Sunday afternoon. Philippe Clement’s side remain in second place in the Scottish top-flight table with the win, 10 points adrift of leaders Celtic.
đ Back Home on Thursday for our final @EuropaLeague League Phase match.
đïž Join us at Ibrox: https://t.co/tSi6RdMBr2 pic.twitter.com/gUr4SbnPMB
— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) January 27, 2025
Les Unionistes, meanwhile, secured a crucial 2-1 win over Braga in their MD7 clash and followed that up with a 4-0 win over Beerschot. Sebastien Pocognoli’s side are currently in third place in the Belgian Pro League and have won each of their last four matches across all competitions.
Thursday’s clash will be the first time that the pair have met since facing off in the Champions League third qualifying round in 2022/23, where Rangers fought from 2-0 down to win 3-2 on aggregate to advance to the play-off round.
Rangers Team News
The ‘Gers will have to make do without Dujon Sterling (foot), John Souttar (unspecified) and Neraysho Kasanwirjo (knee) due to injury, while Connor Barron, Vaclav Cerny and Leon Balogun are doubts after missing the win over Dundee United.
With six goals in his last four games, including against Manchester United on MD7, Nigerian forward Cyriel Dessers looks set to be named in the lineup, likely supported in attack by Hamza Igamane, Ridvan Yilmaz and Nedim Bajrami.
Union Saint-Gilloise Team News
As for the visitors, both Christian Burgess and Koki Machida are suspended after their red cards against Braga last time out, and Alessio Castro-Montes, Henok Teklab and Sofiane Boufal are ruled out through injury.
Kevin Mac Allister is likely to come in at centre-back in Burgess’ absence, while Ousseynou Niang should start in place of Machida on the left-hand side.
Franjo Ivanovic, who netted a brace against Braga and has five goals in his last four games, is almost certain to lead the line alongside Mohammed Fuseini or Kevin Rodriguez.
Rangers vs Union Saint-Gilloise Predicted Lineups
Rangers Predicted Lineup:
Butland; Tavernier, Propper, King, Jefte; Raskin, Diomande; Bajrami, Dessers, Yilmaz; Igamane
Union Saint-Gilloise Predicted Lineup:
Moris; Sykes, Mac Allister, Leysen; Khalaili, Vanhoutte, Perre, Sadiki, Niang; Ivanovic, Fuseini
Rangers vs Union Saint-Gilloise Prediction
The UK’s best football betting sites favour Rangers to round off the league phase with a victory at around 23/20, while a win for Union Saint-Gilloise is priced at 11/5 and a draw is valued at 13/5.
With both sides requiring a victory to give themselves any hope of finishing in the top eight, we can see plenty of goals being scored in this one. However, we at SportsCasting find it hard to favour either side in this one, which is why we’re predicting a 2-2 stalemate to be played out in Glasgow.
Prediction: Rangers 2-2 Union Saint-Gilloise
