ZENIT ST PETERSBURG manager Dick Advocaat will brush aside his feelings for former club Rangers when the two sides meet in tonight's UEFA Cup final at the City of Manchester Stadium.
Advocaat was manager at Ibrox between 1998 and 2001 and much of the hype surrounding this game has centred on the mostly positive relationship between the former Netherlands boss and the Govan club.
The Dutchman has been widely quoted as saying
he is looking forward to meeting up with friends and former colleagues before the game, including the man who bankrolled his period in Glasgow, Rangers owner, Sir David Murray.
However, the Zenit boss will focus on bringing the Russian club's first European trophy back to St Petersburg.
He said: "It is important that I don't become emotional. This is a football match and hopefully I will feel positive afterwards.
"The build-up has been about Zenit being the favourites but Rangers should be shown respect for what they have done this season. Rangers have reached the UEFA Cup final and the Scottish Cup final, they have won the League Cup and will hopefully win the SPL. They deserve the full respect of everyone in Scotland.
"We know a lot about each other's teams and I don't think Rangers will change their style so we expect a good game but I hope that Zenit are the winners."
The full article contains 236 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
