Kilmarnock attempt tonight to succeed where Rangers and Celtic failed and make the second round of their European competition. But, with the French club, Nice, arriving at Rugby Park in possession of a 3-1 lead from the first leg of their Cup Winners Cup tie, the Ayrshire side's assignment looks even more formidable than those faced by the Old Firm on Tuesday.

Apart from escaping the Cote d'Azur with a result that did not properly reflect the towering superiority of the French a fortnight ago, Kilmarnock have been in erratic form at home, losing 3-0 in each of their last two matches, against Hearts and Rangers.

Still, they are unlikely to put up a worse performance than Rangers did in their 2-1 defeat by Racing Club Strasbourg in the UEFA Cup at Ibrox on Tuesday night. The Scottish champions were so comprehensively outplayed yet again by a team currently near the foot of the French First Division that supporters' calls for manager Walter Smith's sacking have been loud and sustained.

Smith cannot detach himself from the poverty of ability, enthusiasm and tactical know-how in a group of players he assembled at a cost of more than £20 million.

Rangers give the impression of aimlessness when moving forward and dishevelment in defence. They have won only two of their last seven matches, against Kilmarnock and newly-promoted St Johnstone, and have been eliminated from three competitions in the last month - the European Cup, the UEFA Cup and the League Cup.

Smith insisted on Tuesday night that he will not be resigning. "I'm the manager of Rangers and that's not changing," he said."

Still, it is not the form the club's triumphalist supporters tolerate and the thought that they could fail to achieve a record 10 successive championships is causing widespread anxiety.