These two clubs have only ever met once before, with Spurs swatting Rangers aside in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1962, 5-2 winners at White Hart Lane followed by a 2-1 victory at Ibrox, en route to glory that year, Bill Nicholson's team smashing Atlético Madrid 5-1 in the final at De Kuip. Over six decades on, Tottenham are dreaming of more European silverware come May, while Rangers are simply seeking to defeat English opposition for the first time since victory over Leeds all the way back in 1992.
Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Preview
As a former, very successful Celtic manager, Ange Postecoglou is unlikely to elicit a warm reception from the Rangers faithful, but he'll be more preoccupied with his current team's poor form, in desperate need of a victory. Spurs venture north of Hadrian's Wall following back-to-back Premier League defeats, meekly beaten by Bournemouth before, on Sunday, an almighty collapse against Chelsea, 2-0 up inside 11 minutes, only to be, ultimately very easily, defeated 4-3. So, having lost seven league games already, winning only six, the Lilywhites have slumped into the bottom half, hence why the pressure is rapidly mounting on Postecoglou.
In this competition meantime, Tottenham started with three successive victories, beating Qarabağ, Ferencváros and AZ, but are winless since, thereby slipping down to ninth. First, on a truly chaotic night in İstanbul, ten-man Spurs were beaten 3-2 by Galatasaray, before being held to a 2-2 draw by Roma a fortnight ago, conceding a stoppage time equaliser. Their remaining fixtures are all winnable, visiting Hoffenheim and then hosting Elfsborg next month, but this Tottenham team can ill-afford another defeat here.
Rangers meantime aren't enjoying a fantastic domestic campaign either, currently third in the Scottish Premiership, a whopping 11 points adrift run-away leaders Celtic, having lost three times already. However, Philippe Clement's team have started to find some form of late though, winning three successive Premiership games, all without conceding, demolishing Kilmarnock 6-0 last mid-week, before an equally comfortable 3-0 victory over Ross County in the Highlands on Sunday.
In truth, their Europa League performances are probably what has kept Clement in a job, accumulating ten points from five fixtures, thereby sat above Spurs on goal difference, their sole defeat coming when Lyon visited Glasgow in early-October. Last time out in Europe, the Gers punished Nice's kamikaze defending on countless occasions, leaving the French Riviera 4-1 winners, with in-form Hamza Igamane bagging a brace, while Mohamed Diomandé and Václav Černý were also on target. This is a massive week for the Light Blues, who also take on Celtic in Sunday's League Cup Final at Hampden, so will the Rangers support be traveling to Mount Florida with a spring in their step, having just witnessed another famous European night at Ibrox, thereby adding to Spurs' woes?
Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Head-to-Head Record
- Matches Played: 2.
- Rangers Wins: 0. Draws: 0. Tottenham Hotspur Wins: 2.
Rangers Team News
In recent weeks, Philippe Clement has made the bold decision of dropping top-scorer Cyriel Dessers to the bench, but Hamza Igamane has repaid this faith, scoring in both of their last two Premiership matches, following on from his double in France. Compared to the team that started in Dingwall at the weekend, Nedim Bajrami is likely to return out-wide, allowing Igamane to lead the line with Danilo, only just fit again following long-term injury, back on the bench. Mohamed Diomandé is also expected to return to midfield; both the Côte d'Ivoire international and Connor Barron will need to be extra careful, because a yellow card would rule them out of January's highly-anticipated trip to Old Trafford.
Rangers predicted lineup vs Tottenham Hotspur: (4-2-3-1): Butland; Tavernier, Souttar, Balogun, Jefté; Raskin, Barron, Diomandé, Černý, Bajrami; Igamane.
Rangers Player to Watch vs Tottenham Hotspur
Václav Černý has been Rangers' most-reliable attacker this season, scoring nine goals so far, including a brace during the most-recent Europa League home game when the Gers demolished FCSB 4-0.
Tottenham Hotspur Team News
Ange Postecoglou returns to Glasgow with a depleted squad. Out of nowhere, Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero were both miraculously fit to start against Chelsea on Sunday but, as suspected, the pair had both been rushed back, both taken off injured, the Argentine in particular lasting no longer than a quarter of an hour. With Ben Davies having hobbled off at Bournemouth last Thursday too, Radu Drăgușin is the only available centre-back option, potentially set to be partnered by Archie Gray, while another former Celtic favourite Fraser Forster will be donning the gloves, with first-choice Guglielmo Vicario sidelined long-term.
Elsewhere, Rodrigo Bentancur can feature, his seven-match ban only applies to domestic competitions, while 19 year old forward Will Lankshear is also available, having served his one-match suspension against Roma. Wilson Odobert , Mikey Moore and Richarlison though remain injured, while a caution for Bentancur, Yves Bissouma or Dejan Kuluševski would see them miss January's trip to Hoffenheim suspended.
Tottenham Hotspur predicted lineup vs Rangers: (4-2-3-1): Forster; Porro, Gray, Drăgușin, Udogie; Bentancur, Bergvall, Maddison, Johnson, Werner; Solanke.
Tottenham Hotspur Player to Watch vs Rangers
James Maddison's form has been mixed this season, in and out of the team, showing glimpses of brilliance at Man City but no real consistency. Likely to start here, will he score against Rangers again, as he did so famously during a loan spell at Aberdeen in 2016?
Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Prediction
We are backing Rangers to add to Tottenham's problems at Ibrox. The Light Blues have been generally underwhelming domestically, but always seem to turn it on when the Europa League anthem sounds so, up against Spurs' make-shift defence, we can see the hosts causing serious problems, hence why we're forecasting a shock win for the Gers: Rangers 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur.
Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur FAQs - Europa League
How to watch Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Europa League game on TV channel?
Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Europa League game will be available on the following TV channels;
- UK: TNT Sports 1 & Ultimate
- USA: Paramount+ & ViX
- Canada: DAZN Canada
How to watch Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Europa League game on live streaming?
Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur Europa League game will be available on the following streaming services;
- UK: Discovery+
- USA: Paramount+ & ViX
- Canada: DAZN Canada
What is the date and kick-off time for Rangers vs Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League?
Rangers vs Tottenham takes place on Thursday 12 December 2024, with kick off at 20:00 (GMT), 15:00 (EDT) & 12:00 (PST).