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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Ewan Paton

Giovanni van Bronckhorst deserves Rangers statue, says Ronald de Boer

Rangers manager GvB deserves statue outside Ibrox, claims former player

GIOVANNI VAN BRONCKHORST deserves a statue outside Ibrox for his achievements at Rangers.

That's according to ex-Gers hero Ronald de Boer.

The former Dutch star praised his fellow countryman for the work he's carried out as manager at the club.

van Bronckhorst took over the reins from Steven Gerrard last November. 

He helped guide Rangers to a Europa League final last season, narrowly losing out to Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties. 

The Light Blues were successful in their pursuit of silverware though, as van Bronckhorst watched his side win the Scottish Cup a matter of days laters. 

The Dutchman has carried on the feel good factor into this season by negoatiating the Champions League qualifiers to reach the group stages of the competition. 

Tonight, Rangers will play in UEFA's top club tournament for the first time in 12-years when they face Ajax.

And de Boer insists his old teammate deserves all the recognition for the job he's done.

He told Sky Sports: "He's done an amazing job. I think he almost deserves a statue because of what he's done. 

"He's put Rangers back on the European stage, basically. After many years they're back where they belong with what Gio has done. 

"They could've won the Europa League against Eintracht Frankfurt. 

"He's just starting but I think he's changed Rangers quite a bit. 

"Of course, all credit to Steven Gerrard too. He started all of this and I think Gio's finished it. 

"Now, it's up to him to continue. I have all the trust in him to do so."

However, Rangers' preparation going into tonight's match has been far from ideal. 

Celtic thumped van Bronckhorst's side 4-0 at the weekend.

And de Boer admits his former team will need to be on their game to get something from Ajax.

He added: "This was a wake-up call for them. If you don't have things right you can be beaten easily. 

"Of course Celtic are their biggest rivals. They were up for it. 

"You have to be sharp. They did it against PSV Eindhoven at the highest level. 

"We'll have to wait and see because Ajax will pressurise Rangers from the start. We need to see how they will cope with that."

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