The referee for Leipzig’s clash with Rangers hasn't awarded a penalty in UEFA competition this season

Rangers can expect a lenient refereeing performance against Leipzig tonight if whistler Benoit Bastien's European record is anything to go by.

The Ibrox side travel to Germany looking to keep their fantastic Europa League run going.

They've already beaten Borussia Dortmund to get this far and know a positive result on their travels will give them every chance of making it through in Glasgow next week.

But Rangers will need to be at their best if they are to bring it back alive and set up another huge Ibrox night.

They'll likely need a bit of luck too and one man they can expect a bit of leniency from is whistler Bastien.

The 39-year-old is known for letting things run - in his eight games across the three UEFA competitions this season, he is yet to send a single player off.

Even more incredibly, he hasn't awarded a penalty in any of the Euro games he has run the rule over.

A young French official, he does most of his work in his homeland and has sent off just three players in his 19 domestic games.

He's also awarded just four spot-kicks - meaning his overarching record this season stands at one every 6.75 games.

Given Rangers' six Europa League knockout games have seen five awarded between them, they may be in for a change of pace in Leipzig this evening.

Bastien has refereed Rangers before taking charge of their 0-0 draw with Legia Warsaw back in 2019.

That was an ill-tempered one by his standards with six players booked including Jon Flanagan and Alfredo Morelos.