BRIAN LAUDRUP: Rangers can’t afford to write off Malmo

The Danish hyperlink with Malmo is prolonged-standing and conveniently explained. Get a 15-moment travel across the bridge on the coastline beside Copenhagen and you are in the city that is household to Sweden’s most prosperous soccer club.

It’s not just about geography, of class. There is possibility there, as well. And ideal now it is the stage on which my former Denmark crew-mate Jon Dahl Tomasson is developing his standing in management.

Tomasson will relish tonight’s Champions League qualifier versus Rangers. No concern about that. It’s in his mother nature. He was usually a large-activity participant and that one-minded willpower won’t have transformed.

I do really feel Rangers have an great possibility to go all the way to the Champions League group stage this period. They enter this tie as favourites for sure. But no-just one in Scotland need to underestimate the substantial test Malmo could give.

Below Tomasson’s leadership, they have developed a wonderful blend of style and metal. I’d assume them to commit almost everything in tonight’s initially leg to attempt and get a end result to guard at Ibrox. It need to be a intriguing face.

As a participant, Tomasson had a wonderful profession. He had this exceptional present with the instep of his foot. He wasn’t the form to always go and take on two or 3 players, or to usually be vastly stylish on the ball, but in conditions of teamwork and finishing he was great.

Just glimpse at the golf equipment he performed for, most notably AC Milan. I know he wasn’t a excellent good results during his time in England with Newcastle but that was an exception, really. To rating fifty two goals for Denmark in 112 caps was just phenomenal.

There have usually been identity features he could take into management. Just one is that willpower I talked about.

He had a superb mentality as a participant. Rock-sound. Just about German-like, if you know what I mean. You could rely on him below stress for sure.

Also, he is a pretty intelligent person. He performed with intelligence and I assume he coaches the exact same way. He really started out both of individuals occupations doing the job in Holland and turned embedded in the Dutch way of observing issues.

He then was the assistant to Age Hareide at Denmark for four decades and that was a further form of management entirely. Really pragmatic.

Tomasson would like his crew to perform. No doubt about that. But for them to do so with the ideal, profitable mentality. They are utilised to dominating games in Sweden, so it’s going to be really interesting to see how they attempt and implement their activity on Rangers.

Becoming supervisor of Malmo is a substantial occupation in the Nordic area. Just one of the most important. You could argue that Rosenborg in Norway and FC Copenhagen in Denmark are the other leading places to be. They all appear with large expectation.

Tomasson brought his style to Malmo past period and won the Allsvenskan at the initially attempt. Now they are just a stage off leading once again right after 13 games of the latest campaign.

They will talk to thoughts of Rangers. I certainly assume the Ibrox crew can appear up with the responses, but there requirements to be a wariness of the menace Malmo can pose.

That threat is decreased noticeably if you can restrict the affect of a further Dane — the captain Anders Christiansen.

At 31, he has been around the countrywide crew for a prolonged although and struggled to get significantly activity-time. But that doesn’t make him a bad participant at all when you assume about the range of choices Denmark has in midfield.

Christiansen was in Italy and then Belgium with out it really doing the job. When he left Gent in 2018, coming again for a next spell at Malmo usually seemed an noticeable go and he instantly turned the leading participant there once again.

Christiansen is the form who will attempt and dictate the activity. He controls the rhythm of Malmo’s perform and really prospects the crew from midfield. He also carries a first rate goal menace.

Rangers cannot allow him run issues the way he frequently does in the Swedish league.

Naturally, even though, Rangers have superior players at their disposal than Christiansen faces in the Allsvenskan most weeks.

You see how very well Steven Davis carries on to run for just one point. His contest for handle with Christiansen could be critical. If Davis comes to the fore, as he has finished so a lot of instances in the previous, then Gerrard’s facet will have a potent system for a fantastic end result.

As I keep emp
hasising, this a hard tie. Progression is not confirmed. But I watched Rangers commence their Premiership title defence with Saturday’s three- get around Livingston and I keep on to see signals they are acquiring superior and superior. Excellent additions have been made to incorporate with the true depth of European experience currently amassed during Gerrard’s tenure.

John Lundstram could have a part in midfield tonight, specially with Glen Kamara suspended. Manner Sakala was tranquil versus Livingston but I’m pretty assured that he will have a large affect in the potential with his tempo and directness.

Even with Kemar Roofe banned and no sign yet of Alfredo Morelos, I just really feel Rangers have so a lot of players able of staying dangerous in entrance of goal. Around the two legs, that could very well be the big difference in conditions of placing up a perform-off round meeting with possibly Olympiacos or Ludogorets.

I don’t glimpse at Rangers and envisage them generating the exact same range of faults that Celtic did versus Midtjylland. And if Gerrard’s gentlemen do go on and get to the group stage, boasting that believed £30million windfall, it would entire an extraordinary transformation within Scottish soccer.

Just a calendar year ago, the discuss was of Celtic going for ten in a row and extending their dominance in both a sporting and financial sense. Rapid ahead to the existing day and they are in turmoil, with a new supervisor nevertheless attempting to figure out how to make a crew.

In contrast, Rangers glimpse settled. It’s a superb posture for my old club to be in. Now they have to get to out and grab the possibility in entrance of them.