There’s still a chance Danny Rohl’s side can surpass the competition’s qualification stages
Rangers are relying on Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace to keep their Champions League dream alive as they booked their place in the UEFA Europa Conference League semi-final with Shakhtar Donetsk.
The Ukranian side defeated AZ Alkmaar 5-2 on aggregate to edge them closer to next month’s final in Leipzig. If they were to overcome Palace, they would more than likely overtake Rangers on UEFA coefficient points, meaning the Light Blues would have to go through the Champions League qualification stages if they won the league. There is a spot available to bypass qualification through a UEFA rule entitled the ‘title-holder re-balancing’, to help ensure more actual champions of their domestic leagues reach the competition.
While Rangers fell at the first hurdle in the Europa League this season after failing to qualify for the Champions League, their previous strong record in Europe may be enough to see them over the line in terms of automatic qualification. The same would not apply for Premiership title rivals Hearts and Celtic, who would need to qualify if they lifted the league trophy in May due to their inferior coefficient record. Second placed Rangers currently sit a point behind Hearts but two clear of Celtic in the standings.
Rangers hopes rest on old enemy for Champions League dream
Oliver Glasner’s name may ring a bell to Rangers fans as it was he who cruelly masterminded the end of their Europa League dream four years ago, when his Eintracht Frankfurt side defeated them on penalties on Seville. After Palace won 4-2 against Fiorentina on aggregate in the quarter final, the Austrian is enjoying another fairytale run in Europe and could now do the Gers a favour.
Shakhtar’s win last night put them within 3.000 coefficient points of Rangers, meaning a win and a draw or three draws in their remaining Conference League fixtures would see them leapfrog Danny Rohl’s side. There’s still a slim chance Shakhtar could knock out Palace and still trail Rangers in the coefficient table, which would require the match to go to a penalty shootout. Rayo Vallecano face Strasbourg in the other semi-final.
Olympiakos are the only side that sit above Rangers in the race for Champions League direct entry, however their domestic form has scuppered their chances. They currently sit third in the Greek Super League, five points adrift of leaders AEK Athens with five games to go. It’s a bizarre situation currently for the Light Blues to be looking at so many different avenues for potential Champions League qualification.
Why did Scotland lose it’s automatic qualification spot?
As recent as 2024, the SPFL Premiership winner didn’t need to go through the rigamarole of Champions League qualification, however the recent dismal recent record of Scottish teams has meant they’ve lost their place. The league winners now enter at the play-off round, where Celtic crashed out this season against Kairat Almaty, leaving no Scottish representative at all in the Champions League.
Second place still enters the competition at the second qualifying round, while third and fourth can qualify for the Conference League at the same stage. Whoever lifts the Scottish Cup will enter the Europa League qualifying round at the third stage, however if the victors also win the Premiership, fifth place will also have a chance to qualify for Europe due to the ‘trickle down effect’.
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