Rangers take on a Spartak Moscow side in complete disarray following the sacking of their manager Massimo Carrera on Monday in their latest Europa League fixture tonight.

Chief football writer Matthew Lindsay spoke to James Nickels of Russian Football News website about the colourful history of The Red-Whites and what kind of opponents Steven Gerrard's side can expect to come up against.

So who are Spartak Moscow?

Spartak Moscow have historically been the dominant force in the Soviet Top League and Russian Primera Liga.

They have won the Russian title a total of 22 times and finished second on 16 occasions. Furthermore, they have won the Soviet or Russian Cup 13 times and have come runners-up a further seven.

The 1990s were a golden age for Spartak. Managed by club legend Oleg Romantsev – barring a spell between 1994 and 1996 when he left to take charge of Russia – they won the top division nine times in the space of 10 years.

Spartak, with the help of great players like Dmitri Alenichev, Valeri Karpin and Aleksandr Mostovoi, also reached the semi-finals of the European Cup (1990/91), UEFA Cup (1997/98) and European Cup Winners’ Cup (1992/93) during this halcyon era.

The club are the most popular and well-supported in Russia.

Are Spartak still the dominant force they once were?

No. Spartak Moscow went 16 long and difficult years without winning the league after 2001. This barren spell was, according to supporters at least, due to The Curse of Fedun.

Their owner, oil magnate Leonid Fedun, bought the club from the Spartak Society in 2003 around the time their difficulties began.

Over this period, a saying in Russian football was coined. “Doing a Spartak” meant to throw away any chance of success in a comical fashion.

Fedun, though, is one of the richest men in Moscow and Spartak are the only side who can compete with Zenit St Petersburg, owned by oil giants Gazprom, due to his significant backing.

He appointed Massimo Carrera manager in 2016 and the former Italy and Juventus assistant led the club to the Russian title in his first season in charge.

Quincy Promes, the Dutch winger, was his outstanding player during that campaign and was named Footballer of the Year in Russia.

Neither Carrera, who was sacked this week, or Promes, who was sold to La Liga club Sevilla for a club record €20 million fee in the summer, are at Spartak, but both are heroes in Moscow.

What are the Spartak fans like?

Spartak are hated throughout Russia by fans of rival clubs. Their ultras carry Millwall-esque “Everybody Hates Us And We Don’t Care” banners at away games.

While cash-rich Zenit attract more followers from outside the country, Spartak are still the best-supported in Russia. Wherever they travel domestically, they will have as many fans as their hosts and often more.

One common misconception is that this level of backing is where their nickname The People’s Team derives from.

The original Soviet football clubs were formed by sporting societies which were owned by separate branches of the state - CSKA Moscow (army), Lokomotiv Moscow (rail) and Dinamo Moscow (secret police).

However, Spartak were owned by trade unions. They took their name from Spartacus, the gladiator who led an uprising against the Roman empire. A statue of him overlooks their stadium. The moniker The People’s Team, then, was a statement against the Soviet government.

Their founders, the Starostin brothers, were sent to a gulag by Lavrentiy Beria, the chief of the notorious NKVD.

Who are their main rivals in Russia?

Spartak’s rivals traditionally were Dinamo Moscow and Dynamo Kyiv. Dinamo were run by the despised secret police. Dynamo were their great title rivals and the second most successful side in Soviet history.

However, Dinamo haven’t won a league title since 1976 and now the rivalry with CSKA Moscow is much more intense.

CSKA experienced fluctuating fortunes until they came under the control of businessman Evgeniy Giner in 2001. The Spartak–CSKA rivalry has always been feisty and rather violent.

Do Spartak still have European ambitions?

Spartak and their fans always have European ambitions. But supporters are also realistic - and increasingly pessimistic.

They know this season is pretty much a write-off. Getting out of their Europa League section and into the knockout rounds would be considered a huge success given their current state of disarray.

They are presently bottom of Group G after losing to Rapid Vienna away and drawing with Villarreal at home.

How are they performing this season?

In short, poorly. Massimo Carrera was sacked this week.

Leonid Fedun has a track record of making awful decisions, but sacking Carrera is by far the worst.

No other side in the Primera Liga has picked up as many points (140) in the 70 games that have been played since he was appointed. He was a hero among the support.

Fedun sold Carrera’s best player, Promes, behind the Italian’s back on transfer deadline day in August and no replacement was signed. To compound this, centre half Samuel Gigot, another influential figure, suffered an ACL injury two days later.

Before this, Spartak had the best player in the country, the best defender and the best defence. They were unbeaten, sat second and had conceded just two goals in the league all season. Now they can’t defend, attack or win.

After selling Promes, Fedun demanded that Carrera turn to youth, revamp the team and get the best results possible at the same time.

By all accounts, Fedun was opposed to sacking Carrera and selling Promes, but was told to by an influential group of former Spartak players who wanted to see a Russian manager in charge and a Russian star player.

Who are their key players now?

Their Brazilian players Luiz Adriano and Fernando are capable of moments of magic, but they are temperamental.

Their young goalkeeper, Aleksandr Maksimenko, has been a surprise inclusion in the side and a stellar performer. Georgi Dzhikiya is back to his best since returning from injury.

But their star man is easily Roman Zobnin. The Dinamo Moscow youth product is a box-to-box midfielder and the most naturally-gifted player in Spartak’s arsenal.

He was one of Russia’s best performers during the World Cup and had been trusted by Carrera to play a more advanced role in the wake of Promes’s departure.

What sort of team can Rangers expect to come up against?

That is anyone’s guess. Carrera has departed and his Spanish assistant Raul Riancho has taken over on an interim basis.

A few fringe players may be recalled. Pedro Rocha and Aleksandr Tashaev could be deployed wide in a counter-attacking system.

Alternatively, Riancho could go with sheer physicality. Ze Luis is a man mountain up top. Despite their difficulties, Spartak have scored the most and conceded the least goals from set pieces in their league this season.

Denis Glushakov sounds like a bit of a character?

Glushakov is essentially Spartak in microcosm.

He was anonymous until the title-winning season of 2016/17 when he suddenly raised his game and became one of the best players in the league.

After that, he became embroiled in controversy, started playing appallingly and missed out on a place in the Russia squad for the World Cup as a result. He has since turned out for the Spartak-2 and the under-20 sides.

An off-field adultery scandal – he was caught red-handed in a sauna with another woman by his wife - was broadcast on Twitter as it happened.

He was suspended by Carrera alongside Andrey Yeschenko for causing a rift in the dressing room and actively trying to get rid of the Italian.

The old “doing a Spartak” phrase could easily be changed to “doing a Glushakov”.

Riancho has reinstated him to the team, but he has not travelled to Glasgow due to a supporters' outcry and Fratria, the main supporters' group, have demanded his contract be terminated.