CS Maritimo 1 (Manduca 26) Rangers 0
The defeat - bad as it is - could have been so much
worse given that the Portuguese side missed a handful
of chances to put the tie beyond the reach of the
Light Blues.
Rangers have now failed to win one single game of the
last eight European matches, and indeed now have the
abysmal record of just one goal in five away fixtures
this season.
Hope springs eternal amongst the most loyal fans in
the world, however - for how else would one explain
the presence of several hundred 'Gers fans inside the
picturesque ground situated at the foot of the
mountains, gazing out across the Atlantic Ocean.
Shota Arveladze replacing Paulo Vanoli was the only
change from Tynecastle as the Ibrox men set out to
ensure their qualification for the group stages of the
UEFA Cup.
Luis Filipe almost caught the Rangers defence cold
inside two minutes with a skillful turn from a Manduca
corner that left two defenders for dead, only for his
cross to be scrambled clear.
Three minutes later Leo Lima was inches wide with a
low twenty-yard drive.
It was all Maritimo at this stage - Stefan Klos
proving equal to the task in nine minutes in holding a
22-yard shot from Alan.
Two minutes later however Nacho Novo almost snatched
the opener when - at full strength - he reached a
Fernando Ricksen cross only to stab his shot against
an upright.
Dado Prso, playing wide on the left, came close twice
with headers from free-kicks, firstly from Gregory
Vignal, then again from Chris Burke.
The Madeiran outfit continued to look the more
skillful and dangerous however - Luis Filipe creating
space for himself when he skinned Craig Moore only to
shoot wide.
The opening goal was merely delayed however - a
misplaced hedaer from Dragan Mladenovic allowing Leo
Lima to send goalwards a powerful drive that Klos
could only beat out into the path of the inrushing
Manduca who seized the opportunity to put Maritimo
ahead.
Suddenly Rangers were up against it - sixty seconds
later Leo Lima's curling twenty~yarder was heading for
the postage stamp corner until Klos somehow turned it
over, then from the resultant Manduca corner the
unmarked Tonel at the back post had a free header that
he directed wide of the target.
Having survived those scares, the visitors came so
close to equalising in 31 minutes when Novo met a
Mladenovic cross only to see his effort deflected wide
by the goalkeeper's legs, then from the resultant
Burke corner Prso saw his header rebound to safety off
the post.
The half ended with the home side on top however -
Alan turning Maurice Ross only to see his shot held by
Klos.
Maritimo were clearly growing in confidence as the
game wore on - Leo Lima trying his luck on the hour
from the halfway line only for the ball to sail just
over, then sixty seconds later Joel was just wide with
a twenty-yarder.
Novo continued to have no luck near goal - seeing his
effort from an Arveladze chip blocked by goalkeeper
Marcos in 62 minutes. Incredibly that would be
Rangers' only attempt at goal in a dreadful
second-half.
Alan almost made it 2-0 in 74 minutes when clean
through from a Zumbi head-flick only to shoot wide,
then two minutes later Klos denied Joel, beating away
his angled drive from a Zumbi pass.
Rangers hung on - only just - for a 0-1 defeat that
leaves them with a chance of qualification, but those
present in Madeira tonight will be under no illusions
that the result was generous to the Ibrox men.
Manager Alex McLeish afterwards summed up:
"I was disappointed at the missed chances - we were
punished for our failure to capatilise. The players
were out on their feet in the last fifteen minutes -
the heat was a factor. It's not for the want of
trying. We need to look forward. We need to start
winning."
You should never have stopped, Alex.
CS MARITIMO Marcos; Ferreira, Tonel, Van Der Gaag,
Briguel; Luis Filipe (Joel 55), Leo Lima (Zeca 83),
Wenio, Chainho, Alan; Manduca (Zumbi 72)
UNUSED SUBS Nelson, Bino, Souza, Fernando
RANGERS Klos; Ross, Moore, Boomsong, Vignal (Vanoli
56); Burke, Ricksen, Mladenovic, Prso; Novo
(Lovenkrands 82), Arveladze
UNUSED SUBS G. Smith, Hughes, Thompson, Khizanishvili,
Malcolm