Rangers rattle Braga cage, Carlos Carvalhal slams ‘ridiculous’ referee
Rangers showed what they are all about last night as they fought back from a first-leg deficit to reach the last four of the Europa League.
The Light Blues had been 1-0 down against Braga after the Portuguese side edged a tight affair in the reverse fixture one week prior but Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men were too good last night.
They raced into a two-goal lead on the night thanks to a brace from captain James Tavernier but a late header from David Carmo sent the game into extra time where Kemar Roofe became an Ibrox hero, scoring the winner.
As if that wasn’t enough entertainment, two Braga players were sent off and the manager, Carlos Carvalhal, went in on the referee after the game.
“The referee was poor in my opinion,” Carvalhal said, as quoted by the Herald. “The red card was ridiculous.
“There was the same situation with one of our players in extra time. I believe the Rangers player should have the same punishment. I do believe we have been prejudiced by referees tonight.
“We should give credit to Rangers. They did exactly the same against Celtic. They started well and scored an early goal. The great difference between the Celtic match and ours was we played with 10 men. I am sad with the result, but I am extremely proud of my players.”
Three games
A European semi-final is a fantastic achievement for any football club in the world so for Rangers to make it here having beaten some of the continent’s toughest opponents is a huge coup.
The Gers now face another two-legged affair in the semi-finals against Bundesliga side RB Leipzig who are now the only team to have dropped down from the Champions League still in with a chance of winning the competition.
They knocked Serie A side Atalanta out yesterday but Rangers could prove to be an even tougher test for the Germans.
With Ibrox rocking like it has been on every European night this season, no team in the world would relish an evening in Glasgow and if they can beat Leipzig, then the sky is the limit.
One 90-minute match for the trophy against either West Ham or Eintracht Frankfurt could be the difference between glory and failure but they have to get to the final first before thinking about winning it.
In other Rangers news, Ally McCoist was seething at one incident in yesterday’s game live on BT Sport.