Mohamed Diomande says he is ‘very confident’ of Rangers success in Bilbao

Mohamed Diomande is confident “something great” is about to happen for Rangers in Spain on Thursday night.

Barry Ferguson’s side face Athletic Bilbao in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final, with the tie delicately poised after a 0-0 draw at Ibrox last week.

Gers are buoyed by strong away form in Europe this season, with victories at Malmo, Nice and Fenerbahce, as well as draws against Dynamo Kyiv and Olympiacos.

“Like we all know, we’ve done really well in our away games in Europe and Thursday is going to be another one,” said midfielder Diomande. “We are really looking forward to it and I’m very confident, I know something great is going to come our way this time.

“You know the chance we have now to play in the semi-final and it’s going to start on Thursday. We are really together and we believe we can do it.”

Diomande was suspended for the first leg but, after coming off the bench to help 10-man Gers fight back and earn a 2-2 draw at Aberdeen on Sunday, the 23-year-old Ivorian hopes to start in the San Mames Stadium.

“It was difficult for me to sit down, to not try to move for every action last Thursday,” he said. “But I was really glad with what my team did, with their effort, their commitment and the fight they had for each other.

“We still have two training sessions before we go (to Spain), so I’m going to give my best in training and I really hope I get a chance to play on Thursday and help my team.”