Jack Butland caught in ‘Horrific’ Rangers incident v Fenerbahce – ‘Oh no’
Jack Butland caused a stir despite Rangers’ 3-1 Europa League victory against Fenerbahce on Thursday evening.
A goal from Cyriel Dessers and two Vaclav Cerny efforts cancelled out an Alexander Dijku strike to give the Gers the advantage ahead of the second leg at Ibrox.
Barry Ferguson got one over on Jose Mourinho in Turkiye, however, one moment involving Butland during the contest caused yet more concern.
Butland caught in horror moment v Fenerbahce
In the 24th minute of the clash, Butland collided with Robin Propper as both tried to clear the ball to ward off Youssef En-Nesyri running through.
The moment was calamitous but luckily, the Turkish outfit could not take advantage of the disaster at the back.
Speaking live on BBC Sportsound (6 March, 18:09), Steven Thompson could not believe it, saying: “Oh no, I’m more worried for Propper, that was some collision with Butland.
“The lack of communication between them both, I don’t know whether or not Propper should just deal with it himself.
“Butland decides to come out of his 18-yard box and just smashes into Robin Propper’s face, it looked really, really bad. It’s an absolutely horrific clash of heads.”
Rangers need Butland to step up
If the Gers are to progress to the next round, they need to hold onto their lead back at Ibrox and Butland will be integral to that, with the pressure that they are bound to face.
The 31-year-old made plenty of mistakes under Philippe Clement too, which has hampered Ferguson’s start in the dugout and has left them 16 points behind arch-rivals Celtic.
| Scottish Premiership | Played | GD | Points |
| 1. Celtic | 29 | +70 | 75 |
| 2. Rangers | 29 | +33 | 59 |
His form in the competition will be vital to Ferguson’s hopes of winning the tournament, which represents the only chance of success for the Auchenhowie outfit and could secure him the permanent role in the summer ahead of the likes of Steven Gerrard.
The Light Blues cannot afford any more mistakes from their experienced stopper if they are to forge a route to the final and try to get everyone back on side after a horrific year.
If they can go all the way somehow, it would bring a good atmosphere back to the club after the toxic nature of the Belgian’s reign towards the end ahead of the 49ers takeover in the summer.