THE second part of the answer was specific to Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Very few have, after all, had the misfortune and heartache of losing a World Cup final.

The first sentiment would have been shared by many Rangers fans, though. Almost two months on from Seville, Van Bronckhorst has still to watch back the footage of the Europa League final defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt.

Given that he has yet to cast his eye over the loss to Spain that denied Holland the biggest prize in the game more than a decade ago, it is unlikely that he will be rushing to put in the DVD of the match at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan any time soon. It is hard to blame him.

The pain and the disappointment is still too raw, the sense of what might have been still too prevalent in the mind for the Dutchman. Rather than looking back at a history that cannot be written, he is moving toward to create new memories.

That process continued in Portugal last week as Rangers were put through their paces in the pristine surroundings of The Campus in Quinta do Lago. All the energy, all the effort, was forward-facing, but a question about the past was enlightening.

On Friday, Van Bronckhorst was chilled and convivial as he discussed the ins and outs, the highs and lows, of his first season back at Ibrox. He talked transfers and tactics, individuals talents and collective achievements. He also addressed Seville.

"No. No," Van Bronckhorst said when asked if he had viewed the Europa League final again. "I haven’t watched the World Cup final back.

"I remember the game in my head, so I don’t need to watch the pictures of that game. I know exactly what we did well, what difficulties we had. It is still in my mind.

"Of course [those feelings can fuel success]. We had a disappointment in Seville on that night and then two days after we had the possibility to end the season with a positive.

"Of course we wanted to win the cup in Seville, that is normal, but sometimes in football it doesn’t go your way. You have to pick up the pieces and keep going again.

"It was a huge game for us to win the Scottish Cup that day and I think also that final helped us a little bit going into the break and going into the international games a little bit more positive than if Seville was our last game."

As he sat just a couple of hours down the road from the venue of Rangers' fifth European final, it was difficult to not let the mind drift back to a night that promised much but delivered nothing, one where the message from fans was to make them dream and all Van Bronckhorst's side could do was make them proud.

Even the flights in and out of Faro airport brought it all flooding back once again. For those that lived through the campaign and the final, the events of Seville will be difficult to reconcile and come to terms with, no matter the years that pass.

That remains the situation for Van Bronckhorst when it comes to the World Cup final in Johannesburg. It was a case of so near yet so far as Andres Iniesta scored the decisive goal in extra-time and ended Van Bronckhorst's dreams of captaining his country to the trophy.

It was his last chance at glory. Indeed, it was his last game as a player with a glittering track record bowed out and retired on a note that wasn't befitting of a career that had seen him become a hero at Rangers, Arsenal and Barcelona and to his nation.

Now, though, the situation is different. This time, Van Bronckhorst has a shot at redemption, a way of making up for the mistakes made and agonies absorbed as he seeks to guide his side into the Champions League.

Nothing will ever make amends for Seville, but there was a sense speaking to Van Bronckhorst and Connor Goldson that it will fuel the fire and drive Rangers on as they seek to reach the lucrative group stages and prove themselves at a higher level this term.

Rangers have shown they can go head-to-head with the best the Europa League has to offer. In the longer run this season, that may well be the competition that offers them the best chance of another prolonged campaign and maybe, just maybe, a shot at some silverware once again.

The draw for the third qualifying round takes place on Monday. By the time Rangers take to the field next month, they will know who potentially stands in their way at the play-off stage if they can avoid a repeat of their Malmo malfunction and overcome the first Champions League hurdle.

That is the stage that Van Bronckhorst wants to manage and coach on, the one that his players and those that he is seeking to sign want to play on. In a sporting sense, it is crucial that Rangers qualify but the financial ramifications, especially now that Celtic are already there, carry even greater significance on and off the park.

Rangers are a club built to win rather than merely compete. At Champions League level, success is relative and their remarkable exploits last term are further proof of where Scottish sides should be putting their expectations in continental competition.

Qualification this season won't make up for Seville. It would be a step forward, a move up, though, and it is the first box that Van Bronckhorst must tick during a season that simply has to deliver the Premiership crown at the end of it.

Rangers are refreshed and refocused, old faces added to by new ones. The messages were delivered, but actions will ultimately speak louder than words for Van Bronckhorst and his players.

If the targets are met and goals achieved, Seville may well have played a part. It owes Rangers that much, at least.