By David Herd
Switzerland is not renowned as a force in European football. In fact, in almost 70 years of European competition, there has never been a Swiss finalist in any of the three major competitions. Grasshoppers Zurich winning the quickly-forgotten Intertoto Cup is the only small footnote where Swiss football is mentioned in the record books. Considering Rangers have reached five European finals and won the 1972 Cup-Winners’ Cup, surely the club must enjoy a healthy record against sides from the land of Roger Federer and Toblerone. In fact, our record is ordinary in the extreme (you could call it neutral).
The first time Rangers welcomed Swiss opposition to Ibrox in a competitive European match was back in September 1976, when the European Cup draw paired Rangers with the Swiss champions FC Zurich. Rangers had won the treble the previous season, but had stumbled in the opening weeks of the new season, and were without a couple of regulars in the home leg. With no Colin Jackson or Johnny Hamilton, manager Jock Wallace opted to push Sandy Jardine into midfield and to bring in utility player Jim Denny in defence. After just 30 seconds, the 35,000 crowd watched the disjointed Rangers back line concede a terrible goal after needlessly giving away possession.
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A Derek Parlane equaliser after half an hour was the only cheer the fans enjoyed all evening, both sides hitting the woodwork in the second half before the Swiss players celebrated at the final whistle. With an away goal, they felt confident in finishing the job against a Rangers team who started favourites but who looked anything but.
Rangers were back to full-strength for the return a fortnight later, where a record 28,000 packed into the stadium and created a hostile and noisy atmosphere. The locals were celebrating another early goal, and it was again a calamitous one for Rangers. A tame looking Martinelli shot somehow squirmed through Peter McCloy and dribbled over the line. Now needing two goals to progress, Rangers dominated most of the remainder of the game.
The Swiss had goalkeeper Karl Grob to thank on numerous occasions, a performance that had Jock Wallace afterwards saying “that man will haunt me for the rest of the season.” He performed heroics, keeping out goal bound efforts from Greig, Hamilton, Parlane and Johnstone. Meantime, the Spanish referee was handing out yellow cards like confetti, the match being constantly stopped for the slightest infringement. As the match slid away, there was a final body blow in the closing stages when Derek Johnstone received his first-ever red card as a Rangers player, when he was dismissed for dissent after complaining to the referee about the physical treatment he was being subjected to by the home defenders.
A 2-1 aggregate defeat added European disappointment to domestic dismay in a season where the treble winners failed to retain any of their trophies. Zurich, meanwhile, reached the semi-finals where they were well beaten by eventual winners Liverpool. That semi-final appearance remains to this day the furthest any Swiss team progressed in Europe’s premier competition.
After waiting 20 years to draw a team from Switzerland, Rangers opened the following season’s European action with a Cup-Winners Cup preliminary round clash with Young Boys of Berne. They were virtual unknowns in Scotland, in fact the biggest talking point on the Ibrox terraces centred around the team’s name rather than knowing any of their players. 1977/78 would go on to be another treble season for Rangers fans to enjoy, but the games against Young Boys weren’t particularly enjoyable ones.
The new season had started badly with a defeat at Aberdeen, as Wallace reshaped the attacking side of the team. Bobby Russell and Davie Cooper had made their competitive debuts at Pittodrie, and for the midweek European match new signing Gordon Smith was given a debut from the bench. But it wasn’t one of the new men who made the difference on a night where the ultra-defensive Swiss frustrated the home team and 30,000 supporters. Just as the unrest was getting more audible on the terraces, inspirational captain John Greig burst through the well organised Swiss defence and lashed an unstoppable shot in off the post. It ended 1-0, and it looked like a nervy night was ahead in Switzerland.
Derek Johnstone had been suspended for the home leg after his Zurich red card, but he was back up front in Berne in a topsy turvy match. Rangers dominated early on, and when Johnstone headed the ball into the net in the 43rd minute the tie looked over with Young Boys now needing three goals to progress. Then, from being in total control, Rangers suddenly collapsed. A bizarre Colin Jackson own goal spread panic, and when Berne went in front through Leuzinger they still had 25 minutes to find the goal to knock Rangers out. That second Berne goal was mired in controversy, Derek Johnstone had been lying injured on the turf for a minute while the Swiss poured forward ignoring his plight.
But just as another dismal Swiss defeat looked on the cards, new signing Gordon Smith swept away the fears rippling through the team and the small band of away fans. He took a Bobby McKean pass in his stride, and slotted the ball away with great composure. A second away goal, and a massive scare now over as Rangers now coasted to a 3-2 aggregate win. But the night was to end with angry scenes as Johnstone was given his second Swiss red card for retaliation, as he reacted to some brutal treatment from the home defenders. Incredibly, Derek played over 550 times for Rangers, and his only two competitive appearances for the club in Switzerland resulted in his only two dismissals. His loss for both legs of the next round was sorely felt, Rangers crashing out 3-0 on aggregate to Dutch outfit FC Twente.
That night in Berne featured so many legendary Rangers players. Greig, Jardine, McLean, Johnstone, Jackson, Forsyth and company are all members of the club’s hall of fame. And the next trip to Switzerland in 1996 came at a time when the Rangers side was again packed with iconic star names, men who helped win 9-in-a-row. Season 1996/97 would be the one where the holy grail of The Nine was achieved, and it started with Rangers thumping Russian champions Alania Vladikavkaz 7-2 away from home to qualify for the Champions League group stages. The draw put Rangers in with Auxerre, Ajax and Swiss champions FC Grasshoppers, with most fans confident of progressing. The opening fixture in Zurich soon brought those hopes crashing down to reality.
Everyone thought a Rangers team managed by Walter Smith and featuring the likes of Goram, Gough, Albertz, McCall, Gascoigne, McCoist and Laudrup should surely have been too strong for the Swiss. In the end, only the absolute brilliance of Andy Goram prevented a humiliation. Rangers faces matched their red shirts, as Grasshoppers created chance after chance. It took 18 minutes for them to take the lead, a header by Murat Yakin from a corner. After that it seemed a case of how many.
The answer to that was three, a comprehensive 3-0 scoreline completed thanks to a brilliant first half free kick by Swiss international striker Kubilay Turkyilmaz, and then the same man heading home unmarked from a corner in the 80thminute. It was an abject start to the group stage, and there then followed three more defeats, meaning by the time Grasshoppers visited Glasgow, Rangers were pointless and already eliminated.
34,000 fans still turned up, Ibrox far from full mainly due to the ticket prices that the club had decided to set for games that were live on ITV. Despite the low-key occasion, one man made personal history on the night. Ally McCoist, who incredibly had never scored in a group stage Champions League game, finally broke his duck in the competition when slotting home a 67th minute penalty for handball. Just six minutes later he scored again, this goal extending his lead as the club’s all-time leading European goalscorer with his tally now at 17.
In a manic next few minutes, Goram saved a penalty, made a miraculous stop from a free kick, then was finally beaten by a Berger shot. But Rangers held out, the 2-1 win being their only points in a dreadful campaign.
And so to the last occasion Rangers faced Swiss opposition. Young Boys are the only Swiss team to be drawn twice against Rangers, this time it was in the 2019/20 Europa League group stage. Steven Gerrard had made incredible progress in continental football in his short time at the helm, and a solid 1-0 win over Feyenoord in the opening fixture had raised hopes of qualifying from a tough group that also contained Portuguese cracks FC Porto. In Berne, a wonderful Alfredo Morelos finish on the stroke of half-time gave Gerrard’s men the lead, and another excellent result looked on the cards. But two moments of madness in the second half ruined the night.
In 50 minutes, skipper James Tavernier carelessly lost possession out on the touchline, the ball was whipped into the middle and dispatched into the net by Assale. A draw wouldn’t be the worst result, though, and Morelos came close to making it even better. Then in the 93rd minute, Tavernier slipped as he went to clear, forward Fassnacht to run in on goal and thump it past Allan McGregor. A 2-1 defeat snatched from the jaws of victory.
By the time the teams met at Ibrox in the final group fixture, Rangers had beaten Porto at home and gained excellent draw in Rotterdam and Portugal. That meant a draw against Young Boys would be enough to see them into the knockout stage, something that two years earlier would have unthinkable as Gerrard’s predecessor spoke to the press in a hedge after losing in Luxembourg. The game came a few days after a painful and thoroughly undeserved loss to Celtic in the League Cup final, a match where Morelos missed a penalty kick.
But on the European stage, Morelos was unstoppable. Rangers started strongly and carved out several decent chances that went begging, but when Ryan Kent teed up Morelos after a defensive mistake, the Colombian easily beat the goalkeeper to keep up his amazing scoring record in the competition. His celebration seemed to be as much an apology for his Hampden miss as it was for hitting the Young Boys net. He would, of course, go on to break McCoist’s record for European goals.
One goal was all Rangers needed, and as the clock ticked on, thoughts turned to the other match to try to establish if this result meant winning the group. Then came a mad last few minutes. With 89 minutes on the clock, Borna Barisic diverted a cross into his own net to suddenly give the Swiss hope. Seconds later, Ryan Jack received a second yellow card and Rangers had to survive injury time with ten men. Ibrox was now in a panic, but Rangers negotiated the added time to collect the point they needed and went through as group runners-up.
So, in summary, our overall record against Swiss teams in European competition doesn’t make particularly enjoyable reading.
Played 8 Won 2 Drawn 3 Lost 3 For 8 Against 11
We now welcome Servette to the stadium, our fourth different Swiss opponent in Europe. The runners-up in the Swiss Super League finished a massive 14 points behind champions Young Boys, and actually only won 14 of their 36 league matches in 2022/23. They drew 16 matches, and scored fewer goals than six other teams in the division. It would appear they are a team who are difficult to beat, but not one who possess huge goal threat. Their penalty shootout win in the previous qualifying round against Genk was achieved despite being a man down for well over 100 minutes in the away leg, a match they went behind in twice and came back despite the numerical disadvantage. They are a team who should be respected, but at the same time it is fair to say they are a level below many of the teams that Rangers have faced (and beaten) in recent years.
Confidence in fragile after a disappointing preseason was followed by a horrendous and abysmal defeat at Rugby Park in the league opener. The manager needs to gel together his new-look attack quickly, and find a way to get the best again out of Todd Cantwell, a player who we need to build around rather than shoehorn in. Ibrox will be packed, it will be noisy. Let’s hope the team give the support reason to keep singing till the last minute. Anything other than a good victory will pile more pressure on already.