Parthenon in Athens next week following tonight's
goalless draw with Panathinaikos at Ibrox.
The result, a huge disappointment for the
near-capacity crowd of 45,203, was the culmination of
a night of frustration for the Light Blues as the
visitors proved themselves the more comfortable in
possession, with Nacho Novo missing a trio of
excellent chances.
Manager Walter Smith made four changes from Saturday
with Sasa Papac, Nacho Novo, Charlie Adam and Steven
Davis (making his debut) replacing the injured Steven
Whittaker, Chris Burke, Kris Boyd and the suspended
Jean-Claude Darcheville as the home side lined up in
the 4-5-1 formation the the Ibrox Manager has used so
often in Europe this season.
There was a healthy contingent of Greek fans present,
many of whom of course are based in the UK, as both
sides made a cautious start.
It fell to debutant Davis to threaten the
Panathinaikos goal in fifteen minutes when his low
twenty-yard drive produced a fine one-handed save from
Croatian goalkeeper Mario Galinovic.
The first clear opening of the tie arrived on the
half-hour mark when a long kick-out from Allan
McGregor, head-flicked on by Lee McCulloch saw Novo
racing through only to see his shot blocked by
Galinovic.
This was a half of few chances, but Novo had another
in 42 minutes when his pace took him clear of the
defence on a long David Weir clearance only to be
thwarted again by Galinovoc.
The first-half ended goalless, but three minutes after
the restart Carlos Cuellar was inches wide of the
target with a header from a Charlie Adam corner.
Panathinaikos at last tested McGregor in 54 minutes
when Loukas Vintra saw his 22-yard right-foot shot
from Dame N'Doye's lay-off held by the Ibrox
goalkeeper.
Eleven minutes later Daniel Cousin replaced Adam, the
striker shamefully being booed as he entered the field
of play.
The best chance of the night arrived in seventy
minutes when Kirk Broadfoot's cross was volleyed
goalwards by Barry Ferguson, only to be parried by
Galinovic, the rebound falling to Novo whose feeble
effort was turned wide by the 'keeper.
Seven minutes later Cousin was inches wide with a
header from Broadfoot's cross as Rangers continued to
press for a priceless opener.
The Greek side were dangerous on the counter-attack
however - and might even have taken the lead in 81
minutes when McGregor flapped at a cross from the
right by Mikael Nilsson, the ball falling to N'Doye
whose goalbound shot was parried by the goalkeeper.
The final chance of the night came in the final minute
when substitute Chris Burke's hanging cross struck the
crossbar.
The game ended goalless - and a crescendo of booing
greeted the final whistle as Rangers must now travel
to the madhouse of Athens hoping for a miracle.
Afterwards Walter Smith summarised:
"We created the best of the goalscoring opportunities,
it was disappointing not to take any. The tie is now
finely balanced."
Portuguese Coach Jose Peseiro of Panathinaikos, who
led Sporting Lisbon to victory in the
NewcastleGateshead Cup of 2004 in which Rangers
participated, was more than happy as he summed up the
game:
"It was a good spectacle. Both teams played attacking
football. Rangers showed respect for our team. I await
a strong, difficult game in Athens when we will attack
more."
RANGERS McGregor; Broadfoot, Weir, Cuellar, Papac;
Novo (Burke 80), Ferguson, Hemdani, Davis, Adam
(Cousin 65); McCulloch
UNUSED SUBS Alexander, Boyd, Dailly, Naismith, Faye
PANATHINAIKOS Galinovic; Nilsson, Goumas, Morris,
Vintra; Tziolis, Mattos, Karagounis, Simao; N'Doye,
Salpingidis (Postiga 65)
UNUSED SUBS Malrz, Ninis, Gonzalez, Papadopolus,
Seric, Ivanschitz
REFEREE Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)
Attendance 45,203