Lincoln Red Imps v Rangers – tactical match preview

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Lincoln Red Imps v Rangers – tactical match preview
Lincoln Red Imps FC and College Europa FC's players take part in the Gibraltar Cup final football match Lincoln Red Imps FC vs College Europa FC at the Victoria Stadium in Gibraltar on May 10, 2014. UEFA President Michel Platini visited Gibraltar today and attended the Rock Cup final. AFP PHOTO / MARCOS MORENO (Photo credit should read MARCOS MORENO/AFP via Getty Images)

So, will lightning strike twice?

While Rangers will always rue the loss against Progrès, the famous Red Imps famously took down Celtic four years ago.

This victory was so unexpected, it now has its own Wikipedia page, where it is described as one of the greatest shocks in European football.

Unfortunately, the same Wikipedia page also directs the interested reader to the Progrès match, which comprised of James Tavernier, Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Jack, and Ross McCrorie (who was an unused substitute during the match).

So, who are the Red Imps? The Red Imps are a fairly new club, but they already have a number of very interesting European records.

They were formed in 1976, as a youth team in the Gibraltese fourth division. They then rose rapidly, and won the Gibraltar Premier league 7 times between 1984 and 1994, then set a European record of 14 consecutive titles between 2003 and 2016.

After reviewing the Imps, it has to be said they play as a cohesive group, in a manner that seems similar to Dundee United.

They know each other well, they like to play attacking football, and they can absorb pressure.

This means in a one-off match, they do know how to break out and score.

In Europe they have played 20 games (thirteen times in the Champions League). They have scored 18 times, let in 33 goals, and they have won five matches.

Their largest defeats were to AEK Larnaca of Cyprus (0:5), and HB Tórshavn of the Faroe Islands (2:5), but usually thegames are tight. They only lost 2:0 and 1:0 in the two legs against FC Midtjylland in 2015.

This year they ‘beat’ Prishtina of Kosovo “3:0” , when Prishtina were unable to field a team, due to eight of their players coming down with Coronavirus.

Then they bet the famous Union Titus Pétange of Luxemburg 2:0, with both goals came from breakouts.

So, in a one-off match they have shown they are capable of winning against the odds, but with Rangers now a much more experienced team I feel this should be a tough, but rewarding afternoon.

The kick-off is at 5pm, at the Victoria Stadium (4:00pm GMT).

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