There are always teams that are forgotten and one of them I feel is the Rangers side under Dick Advocaat in the 1998-1999 season. Now in the grand scheme of things they weren't the best team ever but if you look at the current sides in Scotland and even some Premier League teams they were a very competitive one.
It all started with the appointment of Dick Advocaat as their manager. Advocaat had previously been Holland Manager and also won the Dutch Cup and League with a PSV side containing Jaap Stam, Luc Nilis and Ronaldo... So you guessed it they brought in someone with serious pedigree...
In his first season he spent around £35 million, bringing in the likes of Artur Numan, Andrei Kanchelskis, Giovani Van Bronckhorst, Stephane Guivarc'h and Stefan Klos. These players have proven their quality throughout their careers, Numan ended his career with a World Cup Semi Final and 45 Holland caps under his belt. Kanchelskis had 2 Premier League titles and 1 FA Cup medal in his collection before joining, Klos had won 2 Bundeliga titles and the Champions League the season before joining and finally Guivarc'h who won the World Cup as Frances first choice centre forward the summer before joining. These were looking back on it some high quality signings...
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| Rangers 1998-99 treble winning side based on appearances. Bench: Charbonnier, Vidmar, Prodan, Gattuso, Reyna, McCann, Amato |
This side went on to complete the domestic treble in Advocaats first season and getting to the 3rd Round of the UEFA Cup. This is an amazing feat for someone who isn't familiar with the league. The only place this side didn't succeed was in Europe but in a time where it has become increasingly difficult for sides from the "smaller leagues" I think we can let them off with that...
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