GARY MCALLISTER scored the goal that silenced the Rangers fans on one of the most famous European nights Ibrox has ever hosted.

But it is the roar that he will never forget, and that he is trying to recreate more than a quarter of a century on.

The midfielder’s superb strike stunned the Light Blue legions as he fired Leeds into a first minute lead in the memorable Battle of Britain clash in 1992.

The rest, they say, is history. A John Luckic own goal and Ally McCoist effort gave Rangers a home win, before McCoist and Mark Hateley struck at Elland Road to clinch an historic Champions League victory.

Few nights have come close, not in terms of atmosphere or importance, since. Unfortunately for the Gers, it may be some time before they do.

That is the ambition for McAllister, though. He will return to Ibrox on a European evening next month as Steven Gerrard’s assistant and the 53-year-old is determined to bring the big names and big games back to Govan.

“It’s a night I will never forget,” McAllister said. “You probably think that’s because I scored a good goal but no, it was the moment the referee went to start the game.

“I have never… it was agreed that there would be no away fans.

“To this day, I can remember looking at (Gordon) Strachan, David Batty and Gary Speed on the left.

“The noise that was generated just before that game started was unbelievable. And that’s what we want to try to recreate at Ibrox.

“Just get winning, try to get something going. The thing that we are trying to impress on the players is the importance of this camp moving forward.

“The process is there. You know what results bring.

“They bring a belief in what we are doing. The players think ‘this is getting results’.

“It works both ways. If you can get them to believe in this method, it works for everybody.”

It is Macedonian outfit FK Shkupi that will provide the opposition for Rangers as they embark on another European campaign.

CS Petrocub or NK Osijek await the Light Blues in the second round if they can avoid a second successive Europa League embarrassment.

And McAllister hopes the new era can get off to a positive start as Liverpool legend Gerrard takes his first steps into management in the coming weeks.

He said: “You are trying to build something when you are starting. You are building a dressing room. You are trying to win over the fans.

“I have played at clubs of similar size to Rangers with the same expectation levels. When you do start to get a few results and can see a bit of performance, you start to gain a wee bit of confidence.

“At clubs like the ones I played for, and this club, it snowballs quite quickly. If you get everybody together, it can help. That’s what we are trying to achieve.”

The trip to Skopje will be a journey into the unknown for Rangers as they face the side that finished fourth in the Macedonian First League last term.

No time has been wasted by Gerrard and his new backroom staff – McAllister, Michael Beale, Tom Culshaw, Jordan Milsom and Colin Stewart – since they got down to business this summer.

Rangers have been put through their paces at a training camp in Spain this week and no stone will be left unturned in the pursuit of improvement before the big kick-off.

“We are acclimatised already and while the heat can be a problem being in Spain for ten days should stand us in good stead,” McAllister said.

“I think because it is a new group of staff the earlier start has helped us. It’s a case of the earlier the better.

“We have given ourselves four weeks from the start of pre-season to the first game on the 12th of July. It is part of being in this competition.

“There is a sense of excitement as we now know who our first game will be against.

“If you could take a tablet at this time of the season to get fit it would be great.

“But, you have to put the hard yards in, the running in, the intensity in.

“We have been back a week and I have been impressed by the outstanding application.”

The first test of Gerrard’s methods, and his handful of summer signings, will come when Rangers host Bury in a friendly at Ibrox just days before they return to competitive action.

The Light Blues, of course, were humbled and humiliated 12 months ago as they crashed out at the first stage to Luxembourg minnows Progres Niederkorn.

That result was the beginning of the end for boss Pedro Caixinha and McAllister is determined to avoid a repeat that would burst the Gerrard bubble.

“I’m very much aware of what happened last season,” he said. “I know loads of Rangers fans and that hurt. It would have hurt the players as well.

“We are a year on. It is a new regime and a chance to put things right. We want to get a good run and get moving in this competition.

“We want to get back a big bit of pride and try to stamp Rangers status again. It is a building process of getting the name back out there.

“I had no idea who Progres Niederkorn were. It was a team I’ve never had heard of.

“That would have been tough to take and that got that regime off to a bad start.

“We want to start fast and getting result is the best way of doing that.”