Rangers fans will have high hopes that they can go even further in the Europa League after beating Braga.
After the Red Star Belgrade was ousted, Gio van Bronckhorst’s men removed the European heavyweights as the Portuguese side pulled out of the hat.
With Barcelona, RB Leipzig and West Ham in the hat, a clash with Braga will thrill some as they watch a semi-final push.
Rangers have impressed in recent seasons against their opponents, who play them on April 7 and 14, and will be hoping for more European glory.
But if it looks like a favorable draw on paper, what will Braga bring to the table in the quarter-finals?
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Record Sports puts the page in focus before the showdown.
Who are Braga?
Sporting Clube de Braga has been a regular in European football since its inception in 1945, and brings a whole host of big names to the 30,200-seat Municipal Stadium of Braga.
Even though the shadows of the Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon, Porto and Benfica have lived, they have clashed several times with the European elite.
In fact, they came back from the Europa League back in 2011 in a narrow 1-0 defeat against old foe Porto.
They have been in decent form ever since with third and fourth places in the Portuguese league in the last two campaigns. They are in fourth place in the Premier League.
Legend has it that after World War II Braga changed her kit from green to red and white because her president had business interests in London and regularly visited Arsenal.
How did they reach this stage?
The Europa League experience shone as Braga saw Monaco advance to the quarter-finals.
After a 2-0 victory in the first leg, a struggling 1-1 draw at the Stade Louis II Stadium booked their place in the last eight.
They barely escaped the group stage, which took Midtjylland to second place on the last day of the group stage calendar with a victory over Ludogorets.
They failed to beat the group winner Red Star Belgrade – which will surely act as a big confidence boost for Gio van Bronckhorst after the Rangers’ last 16 aggregate victories.
In the playoff of the knockout round, it took extra time for Braga to see Moldova surprise package Sheriff Tiraspol.
Who is their manager?
Carlos Carvalhal is the man in the Braga Dugout – and is a name familiar to some fans.
The chief veteran has spent most of his 20-year career in Portugal, but his nomadic career has also taken him to Turkey, Greece and England.
His spell at Sheffield on Wednesday earned him a move to English Premier League side Swansea before leading the club to the top of the league later this season.
Since then, he has reinvented himself as Rio Ave manager, leading the side to its highest Premier League points in Europe with a fifth-place finish.
That saw him return to Braga, where he spent three spells as a player.
Who is her star husband?
Captain Ricardo Horta has been the standout player for Braga so far this season.
The band enjoyed an impressive campaign – scoring 19 goals per side, which so far this season are struggling to find the net.
The 27-year-old’s sharp form this season has seen him join movements such as Arsenal and Liverpool this summer.
He will be the man to look after the Rangers defense over both legs.
Most of Braga’s success this season was built on exceptional defensive displays – with goalkeeper Matheus Magalhaes at the heart of it.
While Allan McGregor has on several occasions been the hero for Rangers – the Braga cult hero Magalhaes is probably just as important to his fans with just nine goals conceded in Europe so far this season.
The 29-year-old must be back in good form to endure the likes of Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent.
What is their European family tree?
Braga have become a regular feature of European football since they first reached the UEFA Cup in 2005.
They just failed to reach the Europa League group stage in the last five seasons.
(Image: Getty Images)
The Portuguese side made their first appearance in the Champions League group stage in 2011, and would go to the Europa League final the same season and be a loser for their countrymen.
They also have a piece of European silverware to their name – after winning the Intertoto Cup in the last season of existence back in 2008.
To Rangers fans, they are a familiar enemy.
They recovered from two goals down at Ibrox in the first leg to win 3-2 as they hit last 32 in the 2020 Europa League and followed it up with a 1-0 success in Portugal to go through.
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