Rangers: Premiership title “10x more important” than Europa League

Rangers retaining their Scottish Premiership title is ‘10x more important’ than claiming a maiden Europa League crown, according to Sky Sports journalist Michael Bridge.

The Gers are in the hunt for an unprecedented treble this season, with their Scottish Cup semi-final clash coming up on 17 April.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s charges are currently sitting just three points behind fierce rivals Celtic in the top-flight standings with just seven league games left to play.

And Rangers are also set to take on Portuguese outfit Sporting Braga in the Europa League quarter-finals next month after seeing off Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund and Red Star Belgrade in the previous knockout stages.

Winning the Europa League would guarantee the Glasgow giants a place in next term’s Champions League, but with the likes of Barcelona, RB Leipzig and West Ham still involved, that may be an extremely difficult task.

However, the victors of the Scottish Premiership are now also virtually ensured safe passage to the group stages of Europe’s elite cup competition.

And with two Old Firm derbies left to play between now and the end of the season, the prospect of retaining their domestic title is still in Rangers’ hands.

Despite the possibility of securing a first piece of continental silverware since their European Cup-Winners’ Cup victory in 1972, Bridge believes the financial rewards on offer means the SPFL takes precedent over the Europa League.

Gary Neville PREFERS Mauricio Pochettino to Erik ten Hag! Hear more on The Football Terrace…

He told GiveMeSport: “The thing is, it’s so important the league this season because the likelihood is, unless something really strange happens, the winner of the Scottish Premiership is going to go