Cyriel Dessers’ dramatic 94th-minute equalizer earned Rangers a vital draw with Dynamo Kyiv in the first leg of their Champions League qualifying tie.
It was a result they deserved – and much needed after they conceded nothing in their Scottish Premiership opener against Hearts – and now, ahead of next week’s second leg in Glasgow Be prepared.
Dinamo beat Partizan Belgrade 9-2 in the previous round, with Andrei Yarmolenko taking the lead after Tom Lawrence and Ross McCauslan threatened for Rangers .
With time running out, Desers tapped in Vaclav Cerny’s cross to score what would become a priceless goal in Poland.
The winner of this game will face Red Bull Salzburg or Twente for a place in this season’s Champions League group stages.
Disappointment turns to joy
Desers scored with the last kick of the game
Philippe Clement is undergoing a massive rebuild at Ibrox and Champions League money is vital, but both he and Gers fans know improvements are needed.
Ibrox got off to a good start, with midfielders Lawrence and Desers having shots saved by goalkeeper George Bushchan.
At the other end, Vladyslav Vanat headed in after Gers goalkeeper Jack Butland blocked Kostian Vivcharenko’s shot. The ball was scored but the offside flag was raised, much to the relief of the Gers camp.
Rangers’ Tom Lawrence (center) takes a shot
Rangers hit back and winger McCausland curled a shot from 22 yards out before Butland made a fine save on Oleksandr Pihayonok’s long-range shot.
They enjoyed another good spell but Ridvan Yilmaz’s error proved costly.
The Turkish defender accidentally lost possession in midfield and when the ball was passed to Vanat in the penalty area, he crossed to the 34-year-old former West Ham striker Yarmolenko, who scored from three yards Everywhere is broken.
This is the most sloppy goal ever conceded.
Dynamo’s Andriy Yarmolenko scored the first goal of the game
Just before the break Desser hit the keeper with a close-range header and would have been delighted if it had been ruled offside.
At the beginning of the second half, Brazilian new aid Jephter made his debut replacing the underperforming Scott Wright. His wonderful cross from the left was caught by Deses, but his header was stretched. Busch Chen made a good save and ultimately failed to take the corner kick.
New signing Cerny replaced McCausland on the hour mark and the game continued to rock from start to finish.
Rangers finished the game with plenty of quality but looked like they would have to settle for a narrow defeat until the enigmatic De Sers chipped in at the front post to block Cerny’s cross for what could have been a Crucial goal.
Clement: The pastry chef always believed
Cyril Desales equalized with the last kick of the game
rangers manager Philippe Clement say to bbc scotland:
“We had six shots on target and they had three. We held on until the end to get the result and I’m happy about that because we want that mentality – to work until the last second, keep going and believe.
“We have several new players now, young players, and they did it. Vaclav [Cerny] Got an important assist. Cyrillic [Dessers] Also work hard to achieve the goal.
“He had a few chances where he was good and the goalkeeper saved. He always believed and I’m happy for him to score.”
“If you compare him to seven months ago, he’s done more for the team.
“Maybe people have opinions about him, but I know no defender likes playing against him. He’s just growing. That’s what we want.”
“They learned their lessons well. We are rebuilding. The result today was very positive and the fitness of players like Vaclav is also good [Cerny] Vacation is over, Du Rong [Sterling] Recovering from injury.
VAR officer changes following arrest report
UEFA replaced two officials in the first leg of the Champions League third round qualifiers after reports of misconduct by two officials.
used to be Bartosz Frankowsky and assistant thomas music be deleted, with Thomas Kwiatkoski and Pavel Marek take their place.
Earlier, there were reports in Poland that Frankowski and Musial were arrested for drunkenness and were seen holding road signs on the road with a third person.
The incident reportedly took place in Poland, where the match is being held, as Kiev is unable to play in Ukraine due to ongoing conflict.
What happens next for Rangers?
