ANDY HALLIDAY is confident Rangers can prove they belong at Europa League level in a challenging group he reckons is Champions League quality.
Steven Gerrard’s side booked their place in the competition proper for the second season running with a dramatic late win over Legia Warsaw last month.
And their reward for progressing through four rounds of qualifiers is a section that includes Porto, Feyenoord and Young Boys. The Dutch giants are the visitors to Ibrox on Thursday night as Rangers look to get off to a winning start in Group G.
The Gers came agonisingly close to a place in the knock-out rounds last term and Halliday knows they have a real opportunity in what could be a terrific few months of European action.
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He said: “To be honest, I am delighted with the group that we have got. It is a bit of a Champions League group and the objective was to get into the group stages this year because you want to play these kind of fixtures.
“It is a big test for us but we have been tested before in the Europa League and stood up to it. I think this is a level above, it is a real test and all the fixtures are going to come with different issues.
“The one on Thursday is one we are really looking forward to and I think we have just got to take it a game at a time and see where it can take us.
“I have said it a couple of times that I think we have shown now that we do belong in this competition. Obviously you go back to the disappointment of Progres two years ago and, at that time, we weren’t ready, it was as simple as that.
“We weren’t good enough as a team, as a squad. But I think over the last two years we have shown that we belong here and that we can compete at this level. It is a step above but it is one I think we can handle.”
Rangers warmed up for the Feyenoord clash with a crucial Premiership win over Livingston on Saturday as they came from behind to get back on track in the top flight.
Goals from James Tavernier, Alfredo Morelos and Brandon Barker were enough to win it for Gerrard’s side and ensure they cut the gap to Celtic to three points.
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Livingston had gone ahead through a Steven Lawless penalty but a red card to Lyndon Dykes helped Rangers battle their way to a much-needed and deserved victory.
Halliday said: “Yeah, I don't think it was a classic by any stretch of the imagination.
"It was a scruffy game and I felt we kind of fell into Livingston's trap a bit when we didn't score in the first 15 minutes.
"We were controlling the game, without being excellent. We were comfortable up until the final third but we couldn't find that final bit of quality.
"Then we sort of got sucked into the game for a period and it was only after the red card that we started creating chances.
"But we have been guilty of dropping those points in the last two seasons.
"The most important thing off the back of an Old Firm defeat is to win. Thankfully we did that.”
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