Planet Swans ArchivesThe Swansea City defender will be remembering his former team mate against Nottingham Forest tonight where a Liberty Stadium victory for the Swans will take them through to the most valuable game in football on May 30.
The Swans go into the game nicely poised at 0-0 from the first leg last Thursday and Rangel says that any victory will be in the memory of Besian
“We all know this weekend was the anniversary,” Rangel told the Western Mail. “We have spoken a lot about that as a squad and we know getting to Wembley and winning promotion is the best thing we can do for Besian.
“He was very well liked here and if he was still here he would be part of this team and playing with the rest of us.
“Everyone has been affected by it, but it is extra encouragement for us to go on and be successful.
“It has been a difficult time, an emotional time, but this would be our own tribute to Besian.
“You are always looking for an extra motivation in games, even in a play-off semi-final,” said Rangel.
“And as a squad we have that. We have all had tough times. Andrea Orlandi lost his grandparents this season, Albert Serran too, so the whole group has had an emotional year.
“But we want to do this for Besian.
“We won’t get carried away with things, we put in a very good performance on Thursday, but there is a lot of work to do.
“It’s make or break for both teams. It’s a semi-final and both teams want to get into the final. It’s a 50-50 game, but our confidence is high.
“Our aim is to win the game, but we are aware that Forest are a big club, big spenders, have more experience than us in the play-offs and it won’t be an easy game.
“They are strong. They were in the play-offs last year and they are in the mix again.
“We are the underdogs and they have more pressure on them. I don’t think the pressure is always on the home team.
“We went to Nottingham and I felt the pressure before the game; I was nervous.
“But I settled quickly into the game and now we have the home fans behind us.
“It will be a difficult game for both teams,” he said. “But psychologically we are very strong at home. We have scored so many goals here.
“At home we have the crowd behind us, we love the open pitch and that allows us to play our game.
“It is a fortress for us, and now it is getting a major test. But we have shown at home that we have beaten the big teams in this divisions – like Forest. Now we have to do the same.
“We can’t be scared of what might happen, we have to go for it. So far it has gone well, but there is still a lot to play for before we are finished.”
And with so much to play for, Rangel won’t get caught daydreaming just yet.
Playing in a regional section of the Spanish third-tier just four years ago, the Premier League is just 180 minutes away for the Catalan who cost a meagre £15,000 in 2007. And he admitted: “I thought of the Premier League when I came over from Spain but it seemed a long way away.
“So to get there and get there through the play-offs at Wembley would be amazing.
“But we can’t be thinking of Wembley yet, it’s only half time.”
