Rangers showed their Euro pedigree once again on Tuesday night when they roared back against Union SG to set up a Champions League playoff. But it gets no easier from here as Eredivisie giants PSV stand between Gio van Bronckhorst 's team and a long-awaited return to the group stage.
It will be a meeting of two Dutch football legends as Van Bronckhorst takes on Ruud van Nistelrooy's charges, who fought off Monaco in a hammer-and-tong tie to get this far. They showed both their fearsome attacking presence and a few defensive deficiencies in that one and there will be plenty for Gio and his scouts to sink their teeth into from their 4-3 aggregate win.
As one of the best known teams in European football, PSV hardly need any introduction. But Record Sport have dug deep for seven big talking points from the Eindhoven camp ahead of next week's clash at Ibrox.
How did they get here?
It took them two legs, four goals, and 120 minutes to fight off Monaco. But after a dramatic night at a roaring Phillips Stadium in Eindhoven, it is PSV who eventually earned the right to take on Rangers in one final face-off before the group stage commences.
As Eredivisie runners-up from last season, they went straight into the same round as Rangers, so just like the Ibrox side, their third-round qualifier was their first European tie of the season. They initially led in Monaco before being pegged back, to set up one of the best one-off games you're likely to see this season.
They led through former Rangers target Joey Veerman on 21 minutes, but a Monaco fight-back had them facing elimination as the 90th minute approached. But Erick Gutierrez levelled to take it to extra-time, and familiar hero Luuk de Jong struck with 109 minutes on the clock to finally decide it.
PSV are regulars in the European group stages, but they haven't gone to the Champions League proper since 2018 But they have started the season strongly, with three wins, one draw and 12 goals scored - including five against Ajax in the Johan Cruyff Shield - and look in good shape as they hope to end that wait this season.
Emotional for Gio
Having spent four years managing Feyenoord in his homeland, there is no team Gio van Bronckhorst has faced more in his managerial career than PSV. And there's no doubt it will be emotional for the boss when he travels to Eindhoven in two weeks' time - even if his cool and collected exterior doesn't show it.
His record against Rood-witten (the Red and Whites) is as symmetrical as the unpredictable landscape of Dutch football would suggest. 11 games, five wins, five defeats, although the Rangers boss had the better of them towards the end of his spell there with just one defeat in their final five encounters.
As he gets set for meetings 12 and 13, he'll be hoping to add another couple of wins to his record to get his team over the line in the Champions League.
Familiar faces
One of the heroes of the two legs against Monaco, Joey Veerman will be a familiar name to Rangers fans. The Ibrox side were previously keen to sign him from Heerenveen, but he opted to stay in the Netherlands, joining PSV in January - and it's a decision that looks to be paying off.
Just 28 games into his career there, he's already racked up eight goals and eight assists. And he stole the show in the last round, scoring vital goals in both legs to help drag his team through a gruelling tie.
There's also previously linked Xavi Simons, who joined on loan from PSG in the summer and laid on an assist for Johan Bakayoko in their Eredivisie opener at the weekend. A couple of well known faces for Rangers to look out for.
Danger men
While Veerman is rapidly emerging as one of the key men, he is just one of the star players Rangers will need to look out for. Target man and captain Luuk de Jong is always a threat, he's scored or assisted a goal in every one of their four competitive games so far this season and packs a serious punch going forward.
24-year-old playmaker Guus Til struck a remarkable hat-trick against Ajax in the Johan Cruyff Shield, while Johan Bakayoko and Cody Gakpo pose a serious threat from the wide positions. Rangers might only need to worry about one of those two, though. Why is that?
Transfer uncertainty
The Euro transfer sleuths among us will be well aware that Manchester United are pushing hard to sign Gakpo, who has 45 goals and 35 assists for PSV in 138 appearances. Already capped by the Netherlands nine times, he's been valued at £40million, and it's believed PSV will not stand in his way should a major offer arrive.
An interesting stand-off seems to be emerging, though, with Gakpo previously saying he would be open to staying...if they can make the Champions League group stage.
He said before the second leg: "We must first focus on Monaco and try to make it to the Champions League. Then it is more likely that I will stay. I don't think I have said anywhere that I am leaving, so there is definitely a chance that I will stay."
Could Rangers, then, ultimately have a big say in his future?
The Van Nistelrooy effect
The Dutch football media will likely be all over this one as two of their most famous sons of recent generations go head to head. Van Nistelrooy, of course, is a legendary figure at Manchester United, and represented his country at three major tournaments. He was a teammate of Van Bronckhorst's at all three.
His career was winding down his career by 2010, when Van Bronckhorst captained them to the final in South Africa. But Van Nistelrooy says he is looking forward to a Dutch "get-together" on the touchline.
"Rangers are a great club and I have experienced the atmosphere at Ibrox myself. They made it to the Europa League Final, of course, so they clearly have a good squad. And it will be a nice Dutch get-together on the touchline!
"I have a very high opinion of Giovanni as a person. Both of our families know each other well. When I see how Giovanni has done at Feyenoord and is now doing it again with the Rangers, I have a lot of admiration for that. Rangers are a fantastic opponent to play against. The atmosphere at Ibrox is great.”
An historic fixture
Rangers and PSV haven't faced off since 2011, but they have had some doozies over the years. Both Van Nistelrooy and Van Bronckhorst played in this fixture in fact, back in 1999, as Gers ran riot on one of the most famous European nights Ibrox can remember.
A rampant 4-1 victory put them on course for a third-place finish in a group that also featured Bayern Munich and Valencia, with Lorenzo Amoruso, Michael Mols and Neil McCann all on target. The European history between the two teams dates back much further than that, however, to a famous European Cup tie in 1978.
The Dutch team were the UEFA Cup champions at the time, and had never lost at home in Europe, until Rangers showed up and came from behind twice to pick up a momentous victory in the Netherlands. The game is revered for Bobby Russell's curling late winner that remains one of the most famous goals in the club's European history. And they'd take a repeat of that next week.
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