Rangers captain James Tavernier had said he and his teammates would use their defeat to German Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday as motivation ahead of the Scottish Cup final on Saturday.
On May 18, 2022, Rangers faced Eintracht Frankfurt in the final of the UEFA Europa League in Seville. The game ended 1-1 after extra time before it went into a penalty shootout.
Fortunately for Eintracht Frankfurt, they scored all their spot-kicks but Rangers missed one, thanks to Aaron Ramsey. Hence, the trophy went to Frankfurt after beating Rangers 4-5 on penalties.
Rangers captain James Tavernier and his teammates are so pained to lose the Europa League title to the German Bundesliga club because they had the chance to win the game.
Recall that the Scottish side scored the match opener in the 57th minute through the boots of Nigerian footballer Joe Aribo. Unfortunately, in the 69th minute, Rangers lost the lead, thanks to Rafael Santos Borre’s strike.
Before the equalizer, most football enthusiasts thought the Scottish side could defend the slim lead for the remaining 33 minutes of the game. But within 12 minutes, the Scottish side succumbed to Eintracht Frankfurt’s attacks.
Towards the end of the game, Ryan Kent had a golden opportunity to restore Rangers’ lead but Eintracht Frankfurt’s goalkeeper, Kevin Trapp prevented him from doing so. During the penalty shootout, Trapp’s legs stopped Ramsey’s spot-kick from going in.
When reporters asked Rangers captain James Tavernier how he felt after the game, the 30-year-old English right-back said: “Devastated. Just devastated at the way the game unfolded.
“We took the lead, you know, we conceded a goal which we should’ve done better on. Obviously the keeper makes a fantastic save with Ryan (Kent) towards the end and obviously saves the penalty.
“But, you know devastated is the word but I’m also proud of every single one that is associated with Rangers.
“Every single one of those players that’s in the dressing room, the journey that we’ve been on, the fans that have followed us from everywhere.
“You know, our dream tonight was to make everyone proud, we obviously didn’t push it over the line but the effort that the boys put in I couldn’t be more proud of.”
Hearts will suffer from the fury of Rangers captain James Tavernier and teammates
After losing the Scottish league title to Celtic and the Europa League to Eintracht Frankfurt, Rangers have only one chance left to win a major title in the 2021-2022 season.
Rangers are scheduled to face Hearts on Saturday, May 21, 2022, at 15:00 in the final of the Scottish Cup. If the Scottish club fails to beat Hearts this weekend, they will end the season without a title.
Ahead of the Cup final, Rangers captain James Tavernier who earns £24,000 per week at the Scottish club said: “We’ve got to carry on, keep pushing ourselves, and better ourselves.
“We want to be in these finals again. We want to push for this kind of game, and we’ll use this as fuel for next season and obviously for this weekend.
“I know every single one of those lads will give 110% when it comes to the weekend. We want to pick that trophy up.”
🗣 "Absolutely gutted."
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) May 19, 2022
Ryan Jack, James Tavernier and Scott Wright give their reaction to losing the Europa League final pic.twitter.com/OoUgZk9lrm
Tavernier has been playing for Rangers since July 20, 2015, from Wigan Athletic. He has played 57 games so far in the 2021-2022 season in which he scored 18 goals and provided 17 assists despite being a right-back. His contract with Rangers will expire on May 31, 2024.
