Sasa Papac might live 2000 miles away but distance has only made his heart grow fonder.
And he never passes up on the chance to pull the Rangers jersey over his head despite leaving the club more than a decade ago. The former Bosnia international was a hugely popular figure in Walter Smith’s team that reached the UEFA Cup final in 2008 and will be a major target for autograph hunters who flock to Bury’s Gigg Lane on Saturday as a Rangers Select take on a team of former English pros based in the North West in aid of the Lee Rigby Memorial Foundation.
Now living in Mostar with his wife and four children, the 43-year-old can’t wait for a reunion with many of the friends for life he made in his six years at Ibrox and Papac is convinced that the new generation of Rangers players being brought to the club by Michael Beale will also quickly pick up on the standards demanded of anyone wearing that blue shirt. The former left back credits Smith with having a profound effect on not only his career, but his life, after being signed by previous manager Paul Le Guen from Austria Vienna.
