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Rangers on £100k-a-man to join Celtic in last-16 of Champions League
Last updated at 23:50pm on 06.12.07
Barry bonus: Ferguson thrashed out a lucrative incentive scheme for Rangers players
Rangers stars can take their personal Champions League bonuses to around £100,000 if they join Celtic in the last-16.
Skipper Barry Ferguson thrashed out the payment scheme with chairman David Murray and chief executive Martin Bain earlier this season.
The squad banked around £40,000 per man for reaching the lucrative group stage after defeating FK Zeta and Red Star Belgrade in qualifying.
And they will earn a similar payout if they reach the knockout stages for the second time in three seasons.
With £10,000 individual match win bonuses delivered for the victories over VfB Stuttgart at Ibrox and Lyon at the Stade Gerland, regulars like Ferguson, Allan McGregor and David Weir could toast a six-figure bonus.
Rangers will be happy for the squad to share £1million, with progress against the French champions next week liable to be worth considerably more for one further round.
UEFA's payment for reaching the last-16 knockout round is £1.6m and an Ibrox full house would generate close to another £2m in ticket sales and other related income.
Walter Smith's side require one point from next week's tie and they are already assured of a place in the last-32 of the UEFA Cup in the event of defeat.
Jean-Claude Darcheville has now been ruled out for two weeks with a hamstring injury. Smith has already lost Nacho Novo and DaMarcus Beasley to weaken his hand but Chris Burke and Thomas Buffel both found the net in a 5- 0 win for the reserves at Falkirk on Tuesday.
"We have massive games coming up domestically and in the Champions League," said Ferguson yesterday. "Hopefully, we can get the point we need to reach the last-16.
"I've had a lot of big games recently but I'd rather play every day than train. We have all loved being involved in the Champions League - it is better for us and better for the club.
"Ibrox will be electric on the night and I'm sure that will be a massive help to us. December is another huge month and we have picked up a few injuries. We just have to hope that the squad proves strong enough to cope with them and possible suspensions to come."
Beasley is having surgery back home in the United States but the 25-year-old remains optimistic he will be back this season.
"It was nobody's fault - that's just what happens in football sometimes," Beasley said in reference to his clash with VfB keeper Rafael Schafer. "I got my leg caught in the challenge. I have been a quick healer in the past. Hopefully, I can be again."
Club medics also insist Andy Webster and Steven Smith are suffering no reaction in their rehabilitations.
Meanwhile, Lyon sporting director Bernard Lacombe believes Rangers may yet regret asking the SPL to postpone the Gretna game.
He said: "Players are at the peak of their match fitness at the moment and all they want to do is play games."
