Rangers v PSV: Walter Smith faces dilemma over goalkeeper and a fit-again Steven Naismith

As the Scottish champions look to successfully complete an assignment they began with a 0-0 draw in the Netherlands last week, goalkeeper Neil Alexander and forward Steven Naismith are the men whose inclusion Smith is pondering this evening.

Alexander played in the first leg in Eindhoven, making only his fifth appearance of the season for Rangers, and is a certain starter against Celtic at Hampden on Sunday as he has been Smith's designated keeper for the League Cup tournament.

Rangers' first-choice No 1, Allan McGregor, returned to the side for last Sunday's SPL win over Kilmarnock but Smith has yet to decide whether the current Scotland goalkeeper will play tonight in a game where avoiding the concession of an away goal may hold the key to potential progress.

"Neil came in and played well last week in Eindhoven and he is going to play in the League Cup final," said Smith. "After discussing it with him, I'll decide whether he needs a game on Thursday night or not. If I can play him in the away game, I can play him at home. In fact, I can play him in any game without worrying about it. I'm lucky in that respect."

Smith has a greater quandary with Naismith, who has missed Rangers' last six matches because of a hamstring injury. While the 24-year-old has now recovered, Smith believes he will not be match fit enough to play against both PSV and Celtic.

"It's the same for any player who has been out for a while," said Smith. "They are okay in their first game back but it catches up with them a bit in the second game soon afterwards.

"Steven trained on Tuesday and there's no problem in terms of the injury now. He's been kept back with a view to making sure he is fit now but I don't think it would be possible for him to play in both matches so soon after coming back, so we'll see how he is after today's training before making a decision. But he is available if we wish to use him."

Rangers v PSV in full

• Walter Smith faces dilemma over goalkeeper and a fit-again Steven Naismith

• PSV coach doesn't have problem with Rangers' tactics

Slovakian winger Vladimir Weiss has also declared his availability for Rangers tonight, despite an ongoing foot problem, leaving Lee McCulloch, Kirk Broadfoot, Jamie Ness and the ineligible Nikica Jelavic as Smith's only remaining absentees.To put the task facing Rangers tonight into some kind of perspective, it is worth reflecting on just how rare an achievement it has become for the Ibrox club to reach the last eight of a European tournament.

It was something they did for fun in the pioneering days of continental competition, making it to the quarter-finals or further seven times in the 1960s. That level has subsequently proved far more elusive. Since Rangers won the Cup-Winners' Cup in 1972, they have managed to qualify for the last eight just four times in almost 40 years.

Smith was the man responsible for two of those campaigns, the agonising Champions League near-miss of 1992-93 and the Uefa Cup final run just three years ago.

They were the undoubted high points of a European career as Rangers manager which would come to an end with elimination tonight, a scenario he says he has not contemplated.

While Smith insists it would not exceed his own expectations of his current squad if they could book a place in tomorrow's Europa League quarter-final draw, he believes the prize at stake this evening defeats any argument that further European progress will simply be a burden to Rangers in their pursuit of domestic success.

"That's why people shouldn't be questioning whether we want to have a run in Europe or not," said Smith. "It's wrong to start dismissing the significance of European football. We have gone into the Europa League hoping to do well in all of our games and we will continue to try to do that.

"We're not going into it thinking we are going to lose. I've spent the last few years here trying to instil in everyone the need to win games. So how can a manager turn round now and say it will cause us a major problem if we get through so we don't want to win this game? You can't do that as a manager. I certainly won't. We'll go out and try to win the game. If we don't, it will be our own fault.

"We've given ourselves a good chance to progress and I wouldn't say it has exceeded my expectations. If we do get to the last eight, it would be a fair achievement for our group.

"The European nights are one aspect I will definitely miss about being Rangers manager, even if we didn't win as many as I'd have liked. They are a highlight for any manager. But it honestly hasn't occurred to me this season about it being my last game here, there or in whatever competition. My job is basically to make sure this isn't my last European game, anyway.If we can win this game, it means I've got another two at least and we'll take it from there."

While Rangers received praise for their rigid defensive discipline in securing a 0-0 draw in Eindhoven seven days ago, Smith knows they must expose themselves more as an attacking force tonight against the Dutch League leaders. PSV have scored in their last four away games in Europe and will feel confident about doing so again to change the dynamic of the tie in their favour. There will be no question of Smith throwing caution to the wind, of course, but he has faith in the flexibility of his favoured 5-4-1 European formation to deliver the equilibrium necessary to achieve a victory.

"The first time I was here, I possibly entered a lot of the European games with naivete, thinking my teams could just go out and play the same way they did in Scotland," he observed. "That's an adjustment we've had to make this time and maybe one I should have made the first time. It's the same for nearly every team in Europe, trying to find the balance between attacking and defending. That's what we will need to try to find again on Thursday night, but even more so than in the past. After getting a 0-0 in Eindhoven, we have to be aware of the away goal. PSV have been a danger to many teams when playing away from home this season.

"So we still have to be defensively solid, but we also know we need to threaten their goal far more than we did in Eindhoven. Our only real attempt at goal over there was from a set play but we'll have to trouble PSV from more than that this time."

• TICKETS for tonight's match are on sale until kick-off from Rangers Ticket Centre or from the ticket hotline 0871 702 1972 and rangers.co.uk priced at 27 for adults, 18 for concessions and 14 for children.