There are many similarities between Rangers and their Europa League semi final rivals Red Bull Leipzig.
Like the Ibrox side, the Germans were also languishing in the fourth tier of their country’s league set-up a decade ago.
And they have both risen through their respective ranks to the top flight and now the last four of UEFA’s second tier competition.
However, that is where the similarities end. For while Rangers celebrate their 150th anniversary this year the Bundesliga side were only formed in 2009.
But while the east German side might lack the history of the Scottish Premiership champions they have quickly developed into a real force at home and abroad.
And they will be just as desperate to reach that Europa League final in Seville as they chase that milestone first major trophy.
Currently sitting fourth in the Bundesliga, they have lost just once in 2022 and boss Domenico Tedesco has his sights firmly set on the final.
He said: "Nothing has been achieved yet, but we are striving for more. If you're in the semi-finals, you want to go to the final.”
Record Sport gives you the lowdown on Rangers’ rivals.
Who are Red Bull Leipzig?
They are actually SSV Markranstadt. Well, they were. That was until the then German fifth tier outfit were bought over by Austrian energy drink giants Red Bull and rebranded.
And while they are officially known as Rasenballsport Leipzig, they are referred to as Red Bull due to their promoters.
Their journey started in 2009 and it has been a rapid rise since then as they worked their way through the leagues and qualified for Europe.
Red Bull have twice finished runners-up in the Bundesliga but are searching for that first major trophy.
However, their foundation has led to them being one of the most hated clubs in Germany as rival fans don’t like their corporate backing.
In their first game against Borussia Dortmund in 2016 the Dortmund fans refused to travel to watch the game.
But despite their wealthy backers, the club has tried to rear its own talent with current Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick and Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann proving successful with youth.
How did they reach this stage?
Last season’s Bundesliga runners-up qualified directly for the Champions League group stage and landed a tough section.
They were drawn in Group A alongside heavyweights Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain and Jack Hendry’s Club Brugge.
But they still managed a couple of wins - including a 2-1 home victory against City - and a draw at home to PSG to finish third in the group and drop into the Europa League.
A 5-3 aggregate win over Real Sociedad in the knockout round play off and a bye against Spartak Moscow due UEFA’s action against Russian clubs due to the Ukraine invasion saw them face Atalanta in the quarter finals where a 2-0 second leg triumph in Italy saw them progress after a 1-1 home draw.
Manager - Domenico Tedesco
At the age of just 36, the Italian is still young enough to be playing football but he never made the grade as a player and focused on becoming a coach early on.
Although born in Italy he was raised in Germany and came through the prestigious DFB coaching system where he earned top marks in a year that also included Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann.
Tedesco is multitalented and even had a stint on the sports desk of a German newspaper and has a degree in industrial engineering.
But football coaching was the road he was destined to go down and started out in the youth teams of Stuttgart and Hoffenheim.
His first top team job came at second tier outfit Erzgebirge Aue and his success there earned him his Bundesliga break when Schalke took a chance.
Tedesco spent two years there before moving abroad to Spartak Moscow where he also had two years and then returned to Germany when Red Bull came calling and he is assisted by a familiar face in former Celtic defender Andreas Hinkel.
Star man - Christopher Nkunku
There is little debate over the man Rangers will have to stop if they are to reach the Europa League final.
It was the 24-year-old who kept the Bundesliga side’s own Seville dream alive with a double to down Atalanta in their quarter final second leg.
And that brace took Nkunku’s total for the season to 30 goals with superstars Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe the only Frenchmen to have scored more than him this season.
He came through the PSG youth system and made his debut in a Champions League tie against Shakhtar Donetsk at the age of just 18.
With a host of superstar names for competition at the Parc des Princes, Nkunku moved to Red Bull Leipzig but his exploits this season have seen him linked with a move away and Liverpool are reportedly one of the clubs interested.
Spanish international Dani Olmo is another huge threat but the good news for Rangers is that Kevin Kampl, Willi Orban - outstanding against Atalanta - and Mohamed Simakan are all suspended.
European record
Unlike Rangers, the Germans are fairly new to the continental stage having only made their debut in 2017 when they went on to reach the Europa League quarter finals, losing to Marseille.
Yet in that short space of time this will be their second semi-final after going down to Paris Saint-Germain in the last four of the Champions League.
It’s been a rapid rise for the Bundesliga side and they would love to get their hands on that first UEFA competition silverware.
Previous meetings
This will be the first competitive clash between the sides but they did meet in a mid-season friendly five years ago.
Rangers were taught a lesson on that occasion as they were caught cold on a freezing January day in east Germany.
Scotland man Oliver Burke was on the scoresheet after his big money move to the German outfit as Red Bull routed Mark Warburton’s men 4-0.
