There were a few winces when Rangers were drawn out of the hat in the proverbial group of death, and they have been vindicated by the opening three games. Last season's run to the Europa League Final was all glitz and clamour but in the Champions League, it's three games, no points and not even a goal to their name.
We're halfway through the campaign and Gio van Bronckhorst and his team are staring down the barrel of elimination before they've even got going. Anything but a win - and a convincing one - against Liverpool next week and the best they can hope for in practice is Europa League knockout football after Christmas.
It's very unlikely they will pull off the comeback of all comebacks to haul in the Reds and Ajax and finish as the least likely of runners-up in Group A. Next to impossible. But not quite impossible.
