Giovanni van Bronckhorst proud after Rangers reach Champions League

Giovanni van Bronckhorst revealed the pride he was feeling after Rangers beat PSV Eindhoven 1-0 to reach the Champions League for the first time in 12 years.

After a 2-2 draw against the Dutch side in the first leg of the play-off at Ibrox last week, another absorbing encounter was settled in the Philips Stadium by Antonio Colak’s tap-in on the hour mark for a 3-2 aggregate win.

Rangers will take their place in Thursday’s Champions League group-stage draw along with Old Firm rivals Celtic.

The Rangers boss said: “It is a very proud moment. I know what it means for the fans, for the club, to be playing in the highest level in Europe, competing with the best teams.

“I think it is a proud moment for all of us.

“I have played many games as a player, coached my team Feyenoord in the Champions League and now I have the opportunity to experience it with Rangers so it is very proud moment.”

The Dutchman noted that Rangers had re-emerged in the bottom tier of Scottish football in 2012 after a financial meltdown and had battled back to the Europa League final last season, where they lost on penalties to Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville – and now back to the Champions League for the first time since 2010.