HOPE can be found in adversity provided you look hard enough, and

rather than panic at the prospect of being without key defenders Richard

Gough and David Robertson for tomorrow night's Champions' League match

against Borussia Dortmund at Ibrox, Walter Smith will demand a positive

reaction from the able bodied.

If he has to go into battle without two stalwarts the Rangers manager

is likely to go for broke by instructing his players to launch a

full-scale offensive against the Germans.

There would, as he acknowledged, be little point in asking a team to

be defensively minded if that team's best defenders are unavailable, and

Borussia, who arrive in Glasgow around lunch time today, would relish

the opportunity to test the validity of a second-choice back division.

Players like Andy Moller, Matthias Sammer, Stefan Reuter, and the

wonderfully gifted striker, Ruben Sosa, are serious threats to any side,

even one with a full and able-bodied complement and the Germans, who

lost their opening match at home to Juventus, believe they must now win

away from home to repair the damage caused by the Italians.

Although the Bundesliga side have been in erratic mood their spirits

are lifted by news of Smith's woes.

Also despite the claim of Borussia's coach, Ottmar Hitzfeld, that

Rangers will be better off without Mark Hateley, there should be little

doubt the Germans are pleased they won't be coming up against the

Englishman, who signed yesterday for Queen's Park Rangers.

However, even if he hadn't been transferred, Hateley would have been

unable to play tomorrow night because he still is on the mend after

ankle and knee surgery.

Hateley, who signed on at Ibrox five years ago for #1m, has gone for

the same fee, even though he is now 33, but his new manager and former

Ibrox and England team-mate Ray Wilkins says: ''His experience will be

an enormous help here and our younger forwards can learn from him.

Having him at QPR was something I'd wanted since I became manager.''

Hateley, who signed a two-and-a-half year contract, added: ''I'd

reached the stage at Ibrox where I thought it was coming to an end for

me, and I must always have targets, ambitions, and rewards. The

Premiership has turned into a great stage in the last couple of years

and I'm looking forward to the new challenge of playing in it

immensely.''

As well as the injury problems hampering Gough and Robertson, another

defender, Alan McLaren, is suspended for the match and the manager is

not sure about the fitness of Stuart McCall.

The midfield player has not played in any of the last five games

because of knee ligament trouble, and although he trained yesterday

there can often be a delayed, adverse reaction with such injuries, and

even if McCall reports back fit and well, it might be asking too much of

him to resume in such a crucial match.

Again, though, Smith might have little choice, especially since

McCall's versatility -- he could be used at full back -- might make him

an attractive alternative, but with Ian Ferguson fit again McCall might

have to wait.

The problems at the back are intensified further because the

Australian, Craig Moore, who could step in at full back or midfield,

would leave Smith with only two more slots for foreigners, and it is

certain two of those places will be taken by Gordan Petric and Brian

Laudrup.

The third place will go to either Paul Gascoigne or Oleg Salenko with

the English internationalist favourite.

He and Laudrup were purchased for contests like the one which now

faces Rangers, who lost their first Champions' League game in Bucharest

a fortnight ago, and much will depend on their contributions, which have

been minimal so far.

Gordon Durie, whose goal against Anorthosis Famagusta at Ibrox was

enough to give Rangers a winning edge in the preliminary round, is

likely to partner Ally McCoist up front, but scoring in competitive

European matches has been a problem for Smith's team. In fact, they have

scored only once in their last five games, hardly a strike-rate designed

to put fear into the hearts of opposing defenders.

''We are left poorly in terms of defenders,'' Smith said, ''and if we

are hit with the worst scenario, which would be losing Gough and

Robertson, whose chances of being fit are 50-50, then I would have to do

a lot of reshuffling.

''Even before the Champions' League started I was always aware we

could run into this kind of problem, but I didn't expect I would be

coping with it this early.''

The manager added that while he knows which three foreigners will be

playing, he has no idea of the identities of those who will be deployed

around that trio because of the injury problems. However, he will be

looking at the likes of Alex Cleland, Brian Reid, and Gary Bollan, who

will all have been placed on standby.