Giovanni van Bronckhorst insists Rangers players won't be distracted by 'special moment'

Distractions wouldn’t be difficult to find for the Rangers players if they chose to look for them this weekend.

Saturday afternoon marks a formal celebration of the Ibrox club’s 150th anniversary as they host Aberdeen in the Premiership, while the first leg of their Europa League last 16 tie at home to Red Star Belgrade next Thursday night looms large.

But Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst insists nothing will divert the attention of his team from the pursuit of a much-needed victory in the title race.

A win against Aberdeen would see the reigning champions draw level on points with current leaders Celtic who face Livingston in West Lothian on Sunday.

“No, I don’t think (the anniversary adds any more pressure),” said van Bronckhorst. “Because all we’ve been focusing on is the game against Aberdeen, which is a special game because it’s our 150th anniversary which is a special moment for the club.

“In the end, we are here to win games and to be successful, so the concentration we have and the focus is only on winning against Aberdeen tomorrow.

“Of course, we know the (Red Star) game is coming up but our most important game is tomorrow because we need to have the three points.

“I’ve had a good two days to assess my players, physically and who’s ready to play and who’s not, so in the end we only think about the game against Aberdeen tomorrow.”

Van Bronckhorst’s squad is boosted by the availability of three players who missed the midweek win at St Johnstone – defender Filip Helander and midfielders Ryan Jack and Aaron Ramsey.