Panathinaikos 3 (Zutautas 31, Basinas 61, Konstantinou 79)
Attendance 48,588
The loss, one of the worst in the club’s 47-year
European history, leaves the Light Blues facing a
long, hard winter with only domestic football on the
horizon.
Rangers had lost their three previous Champions’
League fixtures without once finding the net and
tonight’s reversal thus equals their worst-ever run in
the competition.
German Referee Herbert Fandel had previously taken
charge of Rangers’ 2-3 defeat in Rotterdam at the
hands of Feyenoord in February 2002, although only
Stefan Klos, Michael Mols and Peter Lovenkrands remain
of that night.
Manager Alex McLeish made just the one change to his
injury-ravaged squad with Maurice Ross replacing
Emerson, the Brazilian midfielder having suffered a
family bereavement.
Panathinaikos fielded just four players who had faced
Rangers in Athens, whilst Rangers retained seven.
Interestingly both sides were captained by their
goalkeepers.
There was a cautious start from both teams, sizing
each other up with the crowd similarly muted. Indeed
it took twenty minutes for the first threat to either
goal, Chris Burke’s driven cross being fisted away
under pressure by Panathinaikos goalkeeper Antonis
Nikopolidis.
Seven minutes later – out of the blue – Rangers
snatched the lead when Michael Mols found the net with
a stunning header from a Michael Ball cross.
The lead lasted a mere four minutes – appalling
defending allowing Raimondas Zutautas to take
possession of a Markus Munch pass in acres of space
and beat Stefan Klos all ends up with a low 25-yard
drive.
Suddenly a Greek side that had looked to be going
through the motions began to realise that their
opponents were there for the beating, and the omens
were not looking good for the home side as the
first-half drew to a close.
A half-time substitution by Israeli Coach Itzhak Shum
in replacing Lucian Sanmartean with Joel Epalle was to
prove decisive, for the substitute would have a
telling effect on the outcome of the game.
Panathinaikos were growing in confidence as the game
wore on – Rene Henriksen releasing Epalle wide on the
right, his cross finding Miltiadis Sapanis whose shot
was blocked at close range in 52 minutes.
Six minutes later Michalis Konstantinou saw his snap
shot from 22 yards come crashing back off the post
after a mazy Epalle run.
The inevitable was merely delayed however – Angelos
Basinas giving the visitors the lead on the hour with
a stunning thirty-yard drive that perhaps caught
Stefan Klos by surprise.
Rangers were now in deep trouble, and an enforced
change in 65 minutes scarcely helped, Paulo Vanoli
replacing Zurab Khizanishvili who was suffering from a
shoulder injury.
Four minutes later Egil Ostenstad replaced Chris Burke
as the 48,588 spectators grew more and more desperate.
The end was nigh in 79 minutes when that man Epalle
sprung the offside trap, releasing Konstantinou who
raced clear to coolly beat Klos and spell disaster for
Rangers.
Rangers pressed until the final whistle, but only a
Peter Lovenkrands drive from a Mols pass in 84 minutes
tested Nikopolidis, and the final whistle brought a
crescendo of booing that one has to say was fully
merited for what was an abomination of a performance
from the Ibrox men.
Manager Alex McLeish tried hard to put a positive
slant on the night’s fiasco:
“The result was disappointing. Tonight showed our
inexperience. Panathinaikos scored two outstanding
goals. We started well in the Champions’ League, but
it’s been one thing after another thereafter. You can
only do so much with inexperienced players – we had
three on the bench who have never featured in the
first-team. I once received some advice on entering
management – don’t let your players get injured or
suspended. I would hope to get some of the experienced
players back, but Panathinaikos just had too much
experience for us. I just hope my young players can
learn from their Champions’ League experience. You
need real quality to compete at this level.”
Quality Rangers just don’t have, thanks to former
Chairman David Murray whose financial mismanagement
has brought the club to its’ knees.
RANGERS Klos; Ross (Duffy 83), Berg, Khizanishvili
(Vanoli 65), Ball; Burke (Ostenstad 69), Ricksen,
Hughes, Lovenkrands; Capucho, Mols
UNUSED SUBS McGregor, Malcolm, W. Gibson, S. Smith
PANATHINAIKOS Nikopolidis; Seitaridis, Morris, Munch;
Henriksen, Goumas; Sanmartean (Epalle 45), Basinas,
Zutautas, Sapanis (Vlaovic 77); Konstantinou;
UNUSED SUBS Warzycha, Kotsolis, Gitas, Konstantinidis,
Michaelsen
REFEREE Herbert Fandel (Germany)
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