Rangers are set to face the daunting task of taking on the Bundesliga giants in front of their fans at the Westfalenstadion tonight.
The Scottish champions are the underdogs in the tie with Dortmund being heavily tipped to progress in the Europa League at the expense of Rangers.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side are known for their attacking football but Bartley stressed that they cannot afford to have a go at Dortmund tonight.
He stressed the Rangers boss has to come up with a plan to keep his side in the tie before the second leg at Ibrox where anything can happen in front of their own fans.
The midfielder insisted that Rangers cannot afford to go head-to-head with Dortmund and lose the tie in the first leg.
Bartley said on Clyde 1’s Superscoreboard: “I don’t think Rangers just can afford to go head-to-head with them.
“In the first half, they could get blown away.
“For Rangers, it’s all about going through, how they do it doesn’t really matter.
“This is why Gio earns the money that he does, he has to come up with a game plan that allows Rangers to get into the second leg with a chance.
“You go at Ibrox with the fans behind you anything can happen, but what you don’t want to do is go head-to-head with them, go 3-0 down and in the second leg you are kind of dead and buried.”
Rangers will hope to keep themselves alive in the tie before they leave the Westfalenstadion tonight.
