Darryl Broadfoot claims the Class of '99 may need luck to survive a tough opening group

SIX years have passed since Scott Nisbet's speculative shot deflected off Stephane van der Hayden, bounced bizarrely over the head of Club Bruges keeper Danny Verlinden, and nestled in the net at Ibrox, a goal which gave Rangers a 2-1 victory and their fans the belief that maybe, just maybe, this was to be their year.

As it turned out, of course, a 1-1 draw with Olympic Marseille in the Stade Velodrome and a 0-0 result at home to CSKA Moscow meant the French team would qualify from the group, win the competiton by virtue of a header by Basile Boli against AC Milan, and then be stripped of their European crown after being found guilty of match fixing - for which their president, Bernard Tapie, received a two-year jail sentence.

The run that ended only a few yards short of the ultimate glory at club level was catalysed by the stirring 4-2 aggregate defeat of Leeds United and it served notice that Rangers were again ready to challenge the big names five years after Graeme Souness took them to the quarter-finals of the European Cup, only to lose 3-2 on aggregate to Romanian champions Steaua Bucharest.

Season 1992/93 was the season of the domestic treble, the season of European adventure, but it also proved the season of the false dawn.

While they continued to dominate at home, reaching the lucrative Champions League, never mind making an impact in it, proved beyond Rangers for the following two campaigns, as Bulgarians Levski Sofia and then Greeks AEK Athens sent them reeling at the first hurdle.

They were soon back among the big boys in the group stage, but could not muster a victory in season '95-96 against Steaua Bucharest, Borussia Dortmund, or Juventus, while the 2-1 win over Grasshopper of Zurich proved the only highlight the following year in a group also consisting of Ajax and Auxerre.

By then, the achievements of 1993 were but a distant memory, Rangers now had to endure two qualifying rounds, such was Scotland's poor standing in the eyes of the governing body, UEFA, and Walter Smith's final year in charge was as disappointing on the European stage as it was at home.

After the euphoria of nine in a row, the ageing, battle-weary side failed to negotiate their second qualifying obstacle, IFK Gothenburg, and lost grip of the lifeline that was the UEFA Cup, going down to Strasbourg.

The appointment of Dick Advocaat as the club's first foreign coach highlighted chairman David Murray's desire to reach the pinnacle of European football and, more importantly, stay there.

No doubt the meticulous former PSV Eindhoven manager - his love for the game is obsessive - would have pored over Rangers' European history before deciding to leave his native land for the much maligned Scottish Premier League.

Armed with Murray's millions, Advocaat discarded most of Smith's stalwarts and began moulding a side capable of regaining the championship and taking the club back into the Champions League.

At a cost in excess of #30m, Andrei Kanchelskis, Arthur Numan, Lionel Charbonnier, Colin Hendry, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Gabriel Amato, and Rod Wallace were the men in whom Advocaat placed his faith. They enjoyed a healthy run in the UEFA Cup, falling to eventual winners Parma in the last 16, but the earlier defeat of Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen was a barometer of the new-look side's potential, while Advocaat's first objective - the championship - had also been achieved on the home front.

Along the way, Neil McCann and American Claudio Reyna were introduced to bolster the midfield, while Michael Mols and Dariusz Adamczuk were this season's acquisitions.

Advocaat is a hard man, but ruthlessness in the pursuit of success is a virtue in this precarious business. Even in the climate of #30,000-a-week footballers, the Dutchman manages to hold the reins with authority, his stare enough to bring anyone out in a cold sweat.

He is more than just a disciplinarian, however. Young Ferguson was ready to head out the door, disillusioned under the previous regime, until Advocaat handed him a five-year contract, told him to grow up, and run the midfield.

Tony Vidmar, nervous in his first year at the club, has been coaxed out of his shell and now provides an attacking threat, while Lorenzo Amoruso was handed the captaincy, much to the astonishment of those who were convinced Hendry would have been given the honour upon returning home. It took the Italian some time to adjust to the pace of the Scottish game and while he is still prone to the odd gaffe, he has now forged an unspectacular yet effective partnership with Craig Moore.

FC Haka were led a merry dance in the first Champions League qualifier this season and the victory over Parma has shown they are now ready to meddle with those seen as the aristocracy by the bureaucrats of UEFA. No doubt Advocaat's old club, PSV Eindhoven, as well as Valencia and Bayern Munich, will provide stiff competition, but if Rangers can defeat Parma there is no reason why they cannot enjoy similar success against the teams who finished third in Holland's Etredivisie, fourth in Spain's Primera Liga, and Munich, who topped the Bundesliga last year, but who are now struggling in ninth place with frequent stories of internal bickering.

More than any other player, the burden of expectation lies on Mols, a #4m signing from Utrecht. Only recently he picked up the Dutch Golden Shoe, and his form has continued in Scotland. The fulcrum of the Rangers team, van Bronckhorst, Ferguson and Reyna, will also have to be at their dynamic best.

There is no doubt the Class of '99 have the talent to proceed to the next group stage, but to do so they will also require the spirit and determination of the Class of '93 - not to mention a large slice of Nissy-style good fortune.

THE biggest win recorded in the European Cup came in September, 1969, when Feyenoord beat Reykjavik 12-2 in a first-round tie.

The biggest aggregate win in the European Cup was in 1965 when Benfica beat Stade Dudelange 18-0 (8-0 and 10-0).