Walter Smith on the brink of history
One more victory for the Ibrox boss will see him match Gordon Strachan’s record of SEVEN Champions League wins.
Matching Strachan’s record would be yet another incredible honour for Smith who resigned as Scotland manager in the middle of the 2008 European Championship qualifying campaign to take over from Paul le Guen as Rangers boss.
At last month’s Rangers AGM American based chairman Al Johnston described Smith in glowing terms as “the greatest manager we’ve ever been fortunate to have at the helm of the mighty institution that is Rangers Football Club.”
Others in Scottish football have been equally generous in their praise of Smith.
In February Motherwell boss Craig Brown said: “With his achievement at Rangers, and to a lesser extent with the Scotland team, I put Walter along with the great Scottish legends like Jock Stein, Alex Ferguson and Jim McLean.
The following month Dundee United’s Peter Houston said: “In my days working in Scottish football Walter is up there with the best – if not the best.
“Martin O’Neill did a great job but we are talking about a Scotsman here who worked wonders at Rangers when he had money and wonders when they haven’t. I admire him so much.”
Smith won his first Champions League match in November 1992 against CSKA Moscow in a match moved to Germany due to the Russian winter. Four days before the game Rangers league match with Dundee United had to be postponed due to a burst pipe at Ibrox.
Last month’s win over Bursanspor took Smith’s Champions League wins to six spread over an 18 year period.
In contrast Strachan achieved his sixth win with a 2-1 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk in November 2007- just 14 months after his first Champions League win- a 1-0 victory over Copenhagen.
A win for Rangers tonight away to Valencia would be an incredible result for Smith and deservedly rank him alongside Strachan in the Champions League Hall of Fame.
Harry Redknapp on officials cover up
Follow Video Celts on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube