Rangers' Gio Van Bronckhorst has known Gio Reyna since starlet 's*** his pants'

Van Bronckhorst's Rangers will face Borussia Dortmund in the Europa League this Thursday, providing a truly full-circle moment for the pair.

The Rangers' boss previously played with Reyna's father, Claudio Reyna, at Ibrox and the two have stayed friends since, with Claudio even naming his son after his former teammate.

Now, the Sunderland-born teenager will come face to face with his father's old club and, even better, his family friend.

Dortmund boss Rose acknowledged his player's connection to the Scottish club's manager ahead of the fixture.

But while he stated player's focus would be on the game, he did highlight how funny it was that the pair were meeting in this way.

"It's really cool that things like this can happen in football; being the godfather and meeting at that level now," Rose said.

"I think if Gio [Reyna] plays he wants to show to his godfather, or name-giver, what he learned over the years.

"I think Van Bronckhorst already knew him when Gio [Reyna] still s*** in his pants.

"I know they meet privately every now and then, and the focus is now on being successful, but of course it's a nice story."

Van Bronckhorst is also looking forward to sharing the 'very special moment' with his friend's son as he comes up against his side at Signal Iduna Park.

"Gio I've known from the day he was born so I have a special relationship with him as a friend but also as a player," the Rangers boss explained.

"He came to Holland to train with our youth academy at Feyenoord so he was in our house and we were trying to help him to be the player that he is now."

He continued: "We have always kept in contact and seen each other at least once a year. It is a special bond I have with the Reyna family and it will be special for both of us to play against each other.

"Hopefully it is a good game. The competitors that we are, we both want to win. It will be a very special moment."