Who remembers the unexpected defeats to Scottish teams from unknowns such as Artmedia Bratislava, FBK Kaunas, Sigma Olomouc and MyPa 47? These are just a few of the teams that Scottish teams have fallen to in European competition.

In Scotland, we are used to hearing about the debates on whether the Old Firm should venture down south. We are also used to the odd fantastic victory in Europe. Both sides of the Old Firm have reached the final of the now defunct UEFA Cup in the last ten years but fell at the final hurdle. There have been many previous adventures but in recent times what has happened to the Scots in Europe?

Basically, they haven’t been good enough and that’s a fact. The most recent of these came when Rangers came up against surprise Swedish Champions, Malmo FF. They came to Glasgow apparently low on confidence but managed to upset the odds and return to Sweden with a comfortable 1-0 victory. Crucially they scored an away goal that helped them through to the next round after a 1-1 draw in the second leg.

So what can be done to improve our rating in Europe? There is always the argument about starting the league earlier. In theory, it should work but what would this do come the end of the season if a team was left in Europe but had no league or cup matches to play. Money, or the lack of it, is also a big problem for Scottish clubs. With English sides being able to pay tens of millions of pounds for players who have yet to prove themselves on the biggest stage.

The pinnacle just now for any club in Europe is to be in the Champions League. It is the best club competition in the world and it has the best players on show each week. Both Celtic and Rangers have featured in the group stages and have actually not faired too badly. Rangers were the first of the two clubs to reach the last 16 stage with Celtic following suit the very next season. No Scottish team has ever been further than this stage although both teams deserve merit for their performances with Rangers losing on away goals to Villareal and Celtic losing out in extra-time to eventual winners and one piece of brilliance by the best player in the world at the time; Kaka.

With the pedigree and support boasted by each of these sides; they could and should be cutting it against Europe’s elite. The main problem is money and the fact is that without an influx of cash no Scottish side will be anywhere near the business end of the Champions League. When you think about it, the top two haven’t actually faired that badly. A few appearances in the knock-out stage, a couple of finals and scalps of teams such as AC Milan, Manchester United and Lyon.

There is still that expectation in the fans that quickly turns to disappointment year after year. They still retain a belief that their team can do it. This makes them arguably the best in world. Scottish football will get its time on the main stage in Europe once again. I don’t know when this will be but it I am pretty sure it will happen again. The great teams of past decades will always be remembered but let’s hope new teams can also make a name for themselves and go down in history.