'He's been important' - Rangers suffer pre-Olympiacos injury blow as key starter ruled out for up to six weeks

Philippe Clement's side have travelled to Greece in the hope of continuing their positive start in the Europa League after picking up six points from their opening three matches with victories over Malmo and FCSB either side of a defeat to Lyon.

However, they will have to make do without the services of Tom Lawrence who has not made the trip after picking up a leg injury in the 2-1 win over Motherwell in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final at Hampden on Sunday. The Welsh midfielder, who has been operating in a number 10 role, limped off during the first-half in some discomfort and it has now been confirmed he will be out for four to six weeks. Lawrence has been a key player for Rangers this season, scoring five times in 15 appearances and Clement admits his absence is a blow.

He said: “Tom got injured in the cup semi-final, like you saw. So he will be out for several weeks, four to six weeks. So, he will not be there the next couple of weeks. Of course he’s been important. He took the role really well. This season he scored several really important goals, but not only that also defensive-wise. But it gives chances to other players to prove themselves. It’s like that in football.

“We don’t have many (injuries) for the moment, touch wood. We want to continue in that way – with all the squad to be available.”

Clement believes Rangers will embrace the intensity of a packed Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium on Thursday night. The Greek side’s fans are known for their fervour and drew attention when they unfurled a ‘Tonight You Dine in Hell’ banner when West Ham visited in the Europa League last year.

There were also spectacular scenes when tens of thousands took the streets of Piraeus when Olympiacos won the UEFA Conference League last season. However, speaking in the media room in the bowels of the 33,000-plus capacity stadium, the Belgian boss was bullishness about his side’s ability to stand up to the heat.

“I’m confident about that,” said Clement. “Okay, we have a few guys who are less experienced but we also have enough experienced players in the squad. They’re used to playing at Ibrox.

“That helps also. If you have a team who plays in a smaller stadium and come here, it’s different. In Malmo it was also a really good atmosphere. That’s what you want.

“European nights, there’s always some magic. It’s always something special. Different playing styles, different players that you don’t know really well. And in that way, for a player, it’s always nice to play in stadiums like this. Big stadiums with a big crowd. So I think everybody will embrace that and be happy with that.”

Olympiacos have also beaten Swedish side Malmo away and lost to French outfit Lyon ahead of their clash in Greece. Clement believes Rangers will have to hit new heights if they are to overcome the home side.

He said: “Clearly more because they won also against Malmo and they won against Braga. I rate Braga also highly and they won 3-0. We need a really big performance from all the squad, all those starting and coming in but I feel also that they are very hungry to do that.

“It’s now to confirm that in this game at a higher level against a better opponent, to raise our level again. We know what they did last season, of course, winning that trophy. It’s a big club. They won really deservedly against Malmo and Braga. So we know it’s a really big test tomorrow. It’s a big game, but we’re looking forward to that and to impose ourselves and to go for a good result.”