Colak's Ibrox double for Malmo in Champions League qualifier persuaded gers to bring him to Glasgow a year later
Comb through the list of people responsible for the current mess Rangers find themselves and you’ll notice in amongst the ranks of ineffective execs, dithering directors and blundering bosses the name of a certain Antonio Colak .
“For me, Gio was a top coach,” Colak told Record Sport. “He brought me in and I had such a good relationship with him. I paid back his trust with goals. And he got results. He took the team to the Europa League final, won the Scottish Cup - and he took us back to the Champions League. Colak may have kicked-off Rangers’ rapid decline but in fairness to the frontman, he did his best to repair the damage when he returned to Glasgow the following season in a £1.8million move. It was his crucial winner against PSV in Eindhoven which ended the club’s 12-year wait to return to UEFA’s top table.
“Even when I was playing at Rangers, I can’t deny that I looked back at those moments and thought it was one of my best games that I’d had in my career. Of course, it was against Rangers but nobody knew then than I’d be back at Ibrox a year later. “Of course, if you score 18 goals in your first season, then maybe you expected a different momentum,” said Colak, now now playing for Italian Serie B outfit Spezia. Under Gio, I had the run of games and the trust I needed - that’s why I was able to score a lot of goals.
But Colak admits he will be torn on who to support when his two former sides meet again in Sweden on Thursday in their Europa League opener. He said: “You know my heart beats for both clubs. I had really really great memories with both teams.
Champions League Europa League UEFA Rangers FC Gio Van Bronckhorst Michael Beale Philippe Clement Alfredo Morelos Steven Gerrard
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