Butland wows ex-Rangers coach with what he did before Curtis goal v Panathinaikos
Rangers overcame Panathinaikos 2-0 in Russell Martin’s first game in charge at Ibrox.
In an important Champions League tie, Findlay Curtis and Djeidi Gassama both found the net to give the Gers an advantage going into the second leg.
Many players no doubt stepped up in the second half after a poor showing against the Greek side.
While Georgios Vagiannidis’ red card for Panathinaikos just before the hour mark no doubt helped the situation, plenty of Rangers players had performances to remember, including Jack Butland.
Butland praised for his part in Rangers’ opener vs Panathinaikos
Butland has no doubt proved himself to be a controversial figure at Rangers in 2025.
The goalkeeper struggled with consistency in the latter half of the 2024/25 campaign under Barry Ferguson.
As a result, Butland was dropped from Rangers’ starting XI, with speculation about his future rife.
Yet, Martin started the Englishman against Panathinaikos in the Champions League tie on Tuesday, which was also the manager’s first competitive match in charge of the Gers.
This proved to be a great decision, with the keeper producing multiple quality saves to keep the scoreline level.
One of his most important saves came just before the opener, when Butland comfortably collected a shot from one of the Panathinaikos forwards after a quick break.
However, it was his quick reaction after the save that impressed Neil McCann.
“Rangers could be one down. Butland spills. He’s up quick and [he has] the presence of mind just to launch this and get things moving quickly,” he told Premier Sports on 22 July.
“It’s out to Raskin, who’s in that advanced position. But hasn’t Curtis got so much to do? That first touch is brilliant. Another couple just to set himself.”
Butland needs to keep these performances up under Martin
Butland no doubt had a shaky end to the 2024/25 campaign, but on his day, the keeper. Can be superb.
This was clearly on show against the Greek side, as Rangers could have been out of the game at half-time if not for the goalkeeper.
Now, Butland must ensure that this standard does not drop going into the rest of the campaign.
Rangers need a goalkeeper who is reliable throughout the season, and the Englishman has a long way to go to prove he is capable of this at Ibrox.
Hopefully, in the Champions League second-leg against the Greek side, Butland will repeat this performance and keep another clean sheet.
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