Benfica can't escape blues before Rangers as Schmidt told 'thank you and goodbye' before judgement day

Under-fire Benfica boss Roger Schmidt shrugged off a banner made by his own club's fans demanding he quit as he rested three of his key men ahead of their showdown in Scotland against Rangers.

Rangers host the Lisbon giants in the Europa League Round of 16 second leg with the tie delicately poised after a pulsating 2-2 first leg draw in Portugal. But although Benfica returned to winning ways, after defeats by Sporting and Porto and a draw with the Ibrox men, with a 3-1 win over Estoril, their fans made it clear they think he should go.

They held up a homemade banner in German which translated to 'Thank you and goodbye.' Schmidt was able to rest vital players Ange Di Maria, Joao Neves and Rafa and admitted it's win or bust for them on Thursday in Glasgow. He said: "To be honest, I didn't notice the banner. I won't comment on what I don't observe. "In our situation, only a win at Rangers will do. We want to do well in all competitions and we certainly want to reach the quarter finals.

"When we analysed the last few weeks and the last few games, Joao Neves, Rafa and Angel Di María were players who left everything on the pitch and showed great intensity. I thought the time has come for them to rest because we have another big game on Thursday. They are decisive players for us, but we have other good players on the bench who were able to come in and do a good job in replacing them.

"We need the other players in good shape, that was another reason. I also thought it was important to show that we have several options and other players who know how to win games We showed focus and I was satisfied."