Giovanni van Bronckhorst's finest Champions League moment came when he got his hands on the trophy as a player as he helped Barcelona defeat Arsenal in the final at Paris. Now, less than a couple of hundred miles away from the Stade de France where he enjoyed that memorable night in 2006, his journey as Rangers manager will start in the competition.
Van Bronckhorst is aiming to lead the Ibrox side into the group stage of UEFA's premier tournament for the first time in 12 years as he looks to kick on from the success of guiding Rangers to last season's Europa League final. And he learned his first hurdle in that bid after the Light Blues were drawn against Belgian outfit Union Saint-Gilloise.
The Jupiler Pro League side are making their debut in the Champions League, have a manager in his first job as boss and their ultras group even share the same name as fans of their bitter rivals Celtic - The Union Bhoys. Van Bronckhorst, though, will be hoping the only noise from the supporters in the first leg in the Stade Joseph Marien is coming from the away end. Here, Record Sport gives you the lowdown on Rangers' Euro rivals as they look to reach the play off round.
Who are Union Saint-Gilloise?
We talk about Belgium’s big three clubs Anderlecht, Club Brugge and Standard Liege but it’s actually Saint-Gilloise who sit third in the table for all-time top flight title wins with 11 in total.
However, like Queen's Park in Scotland, Union were the powerhouses in their country before the war with their last league success coming in 1935.
But after a fairytale rise the club based in the municipality of Saint-Gilles outside of Brussels are back again and catching everyone’s attention. They returned to the top-flight last season after an absence of almost half a century and took the league by storm as they became the first club ever to finish top after the regular season the first season after winning promotion.
They secured Champions League football after finishing second behind Club Brugge in the champions play-off.
Brighton & Hove Albion chairman Tony Bloom has helped mastermind their success after becoming the majority shareholder three years ago, along with business partner, Alex Muzio in a move that sees the clubs trade players and they have completely transformed them.
Manager - Karel Geraerts
A former Belgian international midfielder who was capped 20 times for his country after a stellar career in the top flight, spent mainly with Club Brugge. The 40-year-old was only appointed to the hot-seat this season for what his first senior managerial job. He replaced Felice Mazzu, who he had assisted for two seasons, after he left to succeed Vincent Kompany at Anderlecht.
Star man - Dante Vanzeir
The brilliant Belgian cap is the gem in the side. Aged just 24-years-old, he came through the youth ranks at Genk before joining Union SG two years ago. Vanzeir made his international debut two years ago in a World Cup 2022 qualifier against Wales.
He has electric pace and an eye for goal, netting an impressive 13 league goals last season and was linked with a move last January with Brighton, Brentford and Atalanta all said to be interested but he is reportedly worth around £20 million.
But there are other stars and £8 million-rated Simon Adingra is certainly one to watch after he moved to USG on loan from Brighton this season.
Their work in the transfer market, however, has been modest and that a signing that sums that up is defender Ross Sykes who was recruited from Accrington Stanley for just £250,000 while others to join include German forward Dennis Eckert on a free transfer from Bundesliga .2 side FC Ingolstadt and youngster Arnaud Dony from Sint-Truiden.
And they have lost some key men with Deniz Undav returning after a loan spell at Brighton and Dane Casper Nielsen moving to Club Brugge.
Pre-season form
Giovanni van Bronckhorst will be able to get the lowdown from some of his old Feyenoord pals after Saint-Gilloise routed last season’s Europa Conference League finalists 4-0 in a friendly.
It’s a sign of the danger the Jupiler Pro League side could pose to the Light Blues. The thumping victory comes after pre-season friendly draws against Brighton and Sporting Lisbon ahead of their domestic league kick off on July 23 which means they will be one week ahead of the Ibrox side in terms of preparation if they were to meet.
European record
This is the first time USG will compete in the Champions League but in their early days enjoyed a rich spell before UEFA sanctioned competitions. In 1959/60 they reached the semi-finals of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup where they lost to Birmingham City, having beaten Italian giants Roma in the last eight.
Stadium
It’s going to be a scramble for tickets for travelling Rangers fans in the Stade Joseph Marien which holds just 9,400. And, in a quirky twist, they will have to listen to the Bhoys - The Union Bhoys - who share the nickname of their rivals Celtic.
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