Carnival atmosphere as fans set out to celebrate in style

THOUSANDS of Rangers fans arrived in Manchester yesterday for the club's biggest game in more than 30 years.

They gathered in three "Fan Zones" specially established in the city centre for tonight's match. Some had tickets, others had journeyed on the promise of one, and others still had simply travelled hopefully.

Grieg McColl was firmly in the latter category. "No, we don't have tickets – have you got any spares?" he asked.

"We're just here for a big party, and hopefully we'll be celebrating. My dad was in Barcelona" – the scene of Rangers' last European triumph, when they won the Cup Winners' Cup in 1972 – "and he's been going on about it ever since. So I'm going to do the same."

Mr McColl and his friend Colin Campbell both insisted they were not really betting men, but they were keen to suggest it would be wise to put some money on Walter Smith's side emerging victorious against Zenit St Petersburg.

Dave Thomson, who travelled from Edinburgh yesterday morning with his son Lee and friends, was equally confident even though he conceded that Zenit would score. "We'll win 2-1," he said, "and Nacho Novo will score the winner. Get your money on that."

Mr Thomson and friends had thought ahead by booking city-centre hotel rooms more than a month ago, when Rangers were still expected to be eliminated by Fiorentina in the semi-finals. Others said they had found places further afield, while a few admitted they were going to have to kip where they could.

While many supporters were clearly alcohol-fuelled, the mood was upbeat and friendly. The sunny weather was a bonus, but rain or shine, win or lose, the fans were intent on celebrating.

Among those who had made the longest journey were John Gold and Iain Mills, members of the Shetland Rangers Supporters' Club. Their trip began on Monday night, though they were uncertain if they would make it into the stadium itself for this evening's game.

"We've booked two tickets on a website," Mr Gold explained. "They were going to post them to Shetland but I reckoned they'd never get there on time, so we've arranged to meet a guy tonight and he's going to hand them over, I hope."

With so many Rangers fans in town, demand for tickets was far outstripping supply. Anyone lucky enough to be offered one could expect to pay £600 plus.