James Tavernier joined Rangers when they were in the Championship in 2015 and will now captain them in the Europa League final against Frankfurt on Wednesday; Aaron Ramsey says he will be fit for game in Seville and adds he has not made a decision over his future
Tuesday 17 May 2022 15:52, UK
James Tavernier says lifting the Europa League as Rangers captain would be a "dream come true" as he looks to secure his status as one of the club's all-time greats.
Tavernier will lead Rangers out at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in Seville on Wednesday when they take on Frankfurt in the Europa League final.
While Rangers last reached the stage 14 years ago, Tavernier - like many of his team-mates - will be experiencing a European final for the first time, and he says excitement within the squad is unsurprisingly "through the roof".
Rangers were seen as outsiders to win the trophy at the start of the season and finished second to Lyon in the group stage, but have overcome the odds - and some of Germany's biggest sides - to reach the final.
"It's been a rollercoaster," Tavernier admitted in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports. "It's been a journey. Some of the results that we have taken back to Ibrox, and to overcome the results that we've had.
"We could have done better in the group stage but that gets long forgotten when it comes to you progressing in the knockout stages."
Rangers began the knockout stages with a tie against Borussia Dortmund, who were instantly installed as one of the favourites to win the competition after dropping down from the Champions League.
But the Scottish side produced an incredible performance to stun the German giants 4-2 in Dortmund - Tavernier says this was the first time he believed Rangers could win the tournament - before finishing the job with a draw at Ibrox.
Rangers knocked out another of Germany's strongest sides in the semi-finals when they came back from a 1-0 first leg defeat to beat RB Leipzig 3-1 at home. "You saw what it meant to us," Tavernier said of the emotional scenes at Ibrox afterwards.
Frankfurt are in the bottom half of the Bundesliga - well below both Dortmund and Leipzig - but Tavernier says Rangers will not be underestimating them.
"We know Frankfurt are a very good team - they have knocked out Barcelona and West Ham," said Tavernier. "You can't really consider the league position they're in. They've got to the final for a reason.
"They are good at counter-attacks, and they're a German team so they will obviously be good on the ball and strong physically. So we just have to nullify their threats and really take the game to them."
Rangers' run to the final is made even more impressive given the fact that right-back Tavernier is not just their top scorer with seven goals, but also the highest scorer in the competition.
"It sounds crazy," admits the 30-year-old. "Obviously I've had a few penalties and a few moments at the back post. It's one of those where I've always said that I'm always there to help the team the best way I can, whether its clean sheets or goals and assists.
"I've managed to pop up at the back post a few times and the lads have done well to get penalties in the games, and I've done well to convert them. Hopefully we keep a clean sheet on Wednesday and I get to be the top scorer of the competition."
But while finishing as the Europa League's leading scorer would top an impressive campaign, Tavernier's priority will be helping Rangers to win their first European trophy since they lifted the Cup Winners' Cup in 1972.
"It will be a dream come true for me personally," says Tavernier of leading Rangers to continental glory. "They're an exceptional group of boys who are in there and I couldn't be prouder to be walking out with them come Wednesday night. It's been 50 years since we last won a European cup and it's our 150th anniversary."
The final also comes at the end of a season that saw the passing of Walter Smith, the manager that led Rangers to 10 league titles, and Jimmy Bell, the club's kitman who worked at Ibrox for over 30 years, and Tavernier says he and his team-mates want to make them both proud in Seville.
"The emotions come in a big mix and we want to make everyone proud. This means the club and everyone affiliated, even the ones looking down on us," he said.
"That's why I am exceptionally proud to lead these boys because everyone knows what it means to wear the shirt."
Tavernier's time at Rangers began in the summer of 2015 - "some would say I'm part of the furniture now," he admits - and his first campaign was in the Scottish Championship as the club continued their climb back to the top flight.
Seven years later and Rangers find themselves in a European final - and Tavernier isn't shy about what winning the game would mean for his legacy at Ibrox.
"It would put me in the category amongst the greats in the club. That's where we all want to be," he says. "We want to put a legacy down for the day we retire. You can look back on your career and be proud of it."
While Tavernier is looking to lead Rangers to glory as the club's captain, Aaron Ramsey will be hoping to banish the bad memories from his previous experience in the Europa League final three years ago.
The midfielder was part of the Arsenal squad that reached the showpiece against Chelsea in Baku in 2019, and with his move to Juventus on the horizon, he was hoping to end his Gunners career in glory.
However, a hamstring injury a month earlier ruled Ramsey out of the final and effectively ended his Arsenal career, while his team-mates went on to be beaten 4-1 by their London rivals.
Ramsey is confident he will be fit for this year's final - "I've managed to get some minutes in recently so I'm good to go," he insisted - and is determined to make up for the disappointment he suffered in 2019.
"It's definitely right up there, to play in a final in a European competition," Ramsey told Sky Sports. "They don't come around very often. I missed the Arsenal one a few years back, so hopefully I can make up for it in this one. For me to miss it though injury was tough."
Ramsey joined Rangers on loan from Juventus in January and has only featured in two of their Europa League fixtures, but the 31-year-old says he has been impressed with the squad he joined mid-season.
"It's a great group, a very level-headed squad, so there are no issues about anybody getting carried away," he said. "We're here for a reason and the squad has been a different class throughout. It's going to be no different for the final."
Ramsey's loan spell ends this summer and he is set to return to Juventus, where he has struggled to make much of an impact since his arrival three years ago.
The Wales international is unsure where his future lies and insists his immediate focus is on helping his present club to victory not just on Wednesday, but also in the Scottish Cup final against Hearts three days later.
"That's to be decided at the end of the season, there is no update on that yet," Ramsey said of his next career move. "I'm just looking forward to the final few weeks here and hopefully making it a very memorable experience for me.
"I'm sure there will be conversations to be had after the season is finished but right now I'm just focused on trying to win these two competitions with Rangers."
