McLeish's side's record in Europe is poor

Rangers' recent record in Europe is unimpressive and they lost out in the Champions League qualifier to CSKA Moscow last year.

McLeish said: "The group stage would be a great achievement because there are many good teams in there, tough teams.

"It will be very difficult even to get through the first hurdle."

Failure to reach the group stage would mean Rangers miss out on a significant amount of prize money, but McLeish added: "Expectation levels mean that people expect you to get through and we will do our very, very best but there are no guarantees.

"Last year, CSKA beat us at the first hurdle and, themselves, got to the second stage of the Champions League and then won the Uefa Cup.

"That's how difficult a task we are facing. We knew CSKA were a good side, just as we knew the Feyenoord team we lost to two years previously - who won the Uefa Cup - weren't a bad side either.

"It should give us confidence that we were quite close to CSKA, despite not playing at our best.

"But it also tells you not to put them on a pedestal - we need to have a real crack at this and make any team that we face wary about facing Glasgow Rangers."