Barry Ferguson says what was ‘ridiculous’ about Rangers 1-1 draw v Panathinaikos
Rangers are safely through to the third round of Champions League qualifying after defeating Panathinaikos 3-1 on aggregate.
Russell Martin’s side followed up on a 2-0 victory in the first leg at Ibrox with a 1-1 draw in Athens on Wednesday.
They will meet Viktoria Plzen in the third round and are now just two ties away from qualifying for the Champions League group stage.
Barry Ferguson makes ‘ridiculous’ claim after Rangers draw in Athens
Rangers rode their luck at times. Jack Butland had to make some fantastic saves in Athens to prevent Panathinaikos from making an impressive comeback, but Djeidi Gassama’s equaliser gave them breathing room after they went 1-0 down.
Some Rangers fans have criticised the team’s performance, suggesting they were lucky to survive the onslaught from the home side.
Reacting to this criticism, former Rangers midfielder and interim manager Barry Ferguson shed some light on the difficulty of these Champions League qualifiers.
In his column for the Daily Record, he said: “What people struggle to understand is just how difficult these ties can be at this stage in the summer, especially away from home.
“The heat is ridiculous, you’re going to have to ride your luck, the opposition is going to have opportunities.
“And that’s when you’re just hoping that your defenders and your main man – the goalkeeper – come up with big moments.”
That’s exactly what happened in Athens. Ferguson dropped Butland while he was in interim charge last season, but the English goalkeeper’s performances in both legs of this tie were fantastic.
Rangers deserve credit for their performances in tough pre-season situation
Rangers are in somewhat of a unique situation, having to play such important games before some other sides have even started their season.
Even if beating Celtic in the Scottish Premiership is a priority for most fans, qualifying for the Champions League will make a huge difference to their finances. It will also help them recruit better players in this summer’s transfer window.
To stand any chance of qualifying, they had to be ready to win a tough qualifier in the baking heat of July.
Unless they’ve played professionally, fans will have no idea it is to return from a post-season break and prepare for a match of this intensity.
Rangers had to do it with a new manager and a host of new teammates. They had to cope with:
- the unforgiving heat of a Greek summer
- an intimidating atmosphere
- a home team going 1-0 up and throwing everything at them.
They should be applauded for their result, even if the performance was a bit shaky at times.
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