SOCCER:RANGERS HAVE issued a warning to supporters over possible Uefa punishment of the club for sectarian singing ahead of the match with Manchester United at Ibrox.
The Scottish champions have been subject to scrutiny and punishment from European football’s governing body before on account of the conduct of their fans and sectarian singing has made a comeback at recent Rangers matches.
A statement read: “The light blues have been informed by a number of sources that sectarian behaviour will put the club at serious risk of punishment from Uefa and other footballing authorities. This includes the singing of songs such as the Billy Boys which is banned by Uefa.”
In making what he hopes will be a pre-emptive strike, the Rangers chief executive, Martin Bain, added: “The majority of our supporters agree that sectarian singing has no place at Rangers and, working together, the fans and the club have made great strides in recent years.
“Unfortunately, there are still those who ignore the club and their fellow fans, with no regard for the consequences. We are making it very clear to supporters we have reliable information if sectarian singing is evident at our matches, it will put the club at serious risk of punishment and puts supporters at risk of arrest.”
Meanwhile, Rangers’ preferred 5-4-1 Champions League template will be altered through force rather than choice with the defender Sasa Papac the latest man out, having failed to recover from concussion. “We’ve run out of defenders, so it will mean a change for us,” manager Walter Smith said. “That formation has been good in terms of achieving better results in the tournament. So it is a bit of a blow to us, having to change it at this stage.”
United’s Jonny Evans is expecting a recall tonight after Alex Ferguson opted to rest Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand. It is an opportunity to impress for the Northern Ireland international who, by his own admission, slipped below the standards that had him earmarked as a genuine rival for Ferdinand’s first-team berth at the start of the season.
Indeed, it could be argued newcomer Chris Smalling, who is set to partner Evans in Glasgow, has now leaped his team-mate in the central defensive pecking order after doing enough during his first few months at Old Trafford to earn a call into Fabio Capello’s squad for England’s defeat by France last week.
“This is probably the biggest challenge I have had,” Evans said. “It is the first time I have been taken out of the team because of performances. I was playing quite a bit at the start of the season, but my performances were probably not up to scratch and I have been out of the team for a while. But I am not going to mope about it. This is a good opportunity for me.”
Evans should be able to supply some inside information on Rangers too given he is close pals with Kyle Lafferty and Steven Davis, even taking advantage of his axing for the win at Stoke last month to attend his first Old Firm game, which the visitors won at Parkhead. “I have never been to Ibrox before but one of the benefits of being dropped was that I was able to come up for the Celtic-Rangers game,” said Evans. “Ian Durrant sorted me out for the tickets. I was going to give Kyle a call later. The plan is to get the team. If I find it out, you know where it has come from.”
