John Hartson fumes at claims Rangers Europa League win would surpass Celtic Lisbon Lions in on air take down

The Welshman wasn't entertaining the notion that the Ibrox side could surpass their Glasgow rivals on Wednesday night.

Defiant John Hartson has shut down suggestion that if Rangers win the Europa League it would surpass Celtic's European Cup triumph.

Gio van Bronckhorst's men have their chance to write their names in the history books as they prepare to face Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville.

That has led to some claiming that the victory would eclipse the Lisbon Lions historic European Cup success in 1967.

Former Ibrox midfielder Kevin Thomson has claimed that a Rangers win would make them the greatest Scottish team of all time.

But the Welshman was having none of it.

In a prickly response, Hartson told The Go Radio Football Show: "This is not a debate. It's not even a topic of discussion.

"You cannot compare any team winning the Europa League to winning the Champions League.

"When Celtic won the European Cup in 1967 they became the first British team to do it. Not only did they bring the European Cup back home from Lisbon, they did it with eleven Scotsman in the starting line-up. That will never, ever be done again.

"I've gone on record and said it's a wonderful achievement, Rangers even getting to the Europa League final. I wish them well, I really do.

"But are we talking Sevilla, they have won the Europa League six times, is that then bigger than winning the Champions League? It's not. I like Kevin, but to suggest that this would be bigger than winning the European Cup is wrong."