HAVING to temporarily relocate to Hampden until the delayed redevelopment work on the Copland Stand at Ibrox is completed is going to be an expensive business for Rangers.
Playing at the Mount Florida venue instead of their Govan home certainly proved highly costly for the Glasgow club this evening as their pursuit of Champions League riches came to an end with an excruciating defeat to Dynamo Kyiv.
There is unhappiness among followers of the Light Blues about their heroes not being able to host matches at their spiritual home at the moment due to a shipment of materials being held up in Asia.
Heading along to Hampden to watch Rangers play has, despite the widespread dislike there is of the ground, been a joyous experience for them in the past. It has always meant their team has made it through to the semi-final or final of one of the two national cup competitions.
Taking part in such an important European fixture somewhere other than Ibrox, though, did just not feel quite right.
For all their struggles domestically in the past few seasons, Rangers have enjoyed numerous successes on the continent. The atmosphere generated in their ain midden has been a major factor in many of them.
Tens of thousands of home supporters turned up in the hope that Philippe Clement’s men – who had drawn 1-1 with Kyiv in the first leg of the third qualifying round double header in Poland last week thanks to an injury-time Cyriel Dessers strike – could progress to the play-offs.
The members of the Union Bears ultras group did their best to crank up the decibels a notch or two as the teams emerged from the tunnel before kick-off. They unveiled a banner in the South Stand which read “Admired By All Who Knew Them” and held up giant strips with the names of their most famous servants on them.
There were lusty renditions of The Blue Sea of Ibrox – possibly due to the fact they were pining for a return to their usual surroundings, possibly not – during the tentative opening exchanges.
There were, though, still large sections of the stadium which lay empty. It was a far cry from the sort of occasion which spectators enjoyed during, say, the run to the Europa League final a few seasons ago. Or, for that matter, that there have been at this stage in the Champions League in the recent past.
This is the fourth time since they returned to the top flight eight years ago that Rangers have attempted to book their place alongside the Bayern Munichs, Paris Saint-Germains and Real Madrids of this world. They have always received great backing as they have done so.
A crowd of 47,021 watched at Ibrox when they lost 2-1 to Malmo of Sweden in the third qualifying round in 2021, there were 48,454 in attendance as they came from 2-0 down to defeat Belgian opponents Union Saint-Gilloise 3-0 in 2022 and 48,956 turned up as they overcame Servette of Switzerland 2-1 last year.
When Kyiv centre-back Denys Popov went to ground in the Rangers area in a shameless attempt to win a penalty, the only noise which could be heard was the clapping and cheering of the tiny pocket of away supporters who were billeted in the corner between the South Stand and the East Stand.
Would not having their usual level of support be detrimental to their hopes of going through to take on RB Salzburg of Austria for a berth in the new league phase? Ultimately, Rangers players have to be able to perform at their best regardless of how many are roaring them on. They failed to do so.
James Tavernier and his team mates, a couple of defensive lapses and worrying moments aside, had the better of the first half. However, they were unable to convert any of the half chances which they created in the final third. Ross McCausland had a tame shot on target easily saved by Georgiy Bushchan. That was the closest they came to breaking the deadlock.
The “home” side were lacking a creative spark, a cutting edge, much-needed quality up front. Vaclav Cerny, the Czech Republic winger who had set up Dessers for the late equaliser in Lublin seven days earlier, received a rousing ovation when he replaced McCausland at the start of the second half.
But the harsh ordering off of Cerny’s fellow new boy Jefte, who had received a yellow card for a foul Andriy Yarmalenko before half-time, for a second bookable offence just five minutes after play restarted put Rangers in a difficult position. It was a ludicrous decision by Italian referee Marco Guida. But VAR could not be used to overturn it.
The baffling ruling riled their fans and then some. They were roused to life by the blatant injustice. The Hampden Roar? More like the Hampden Rage. Every dive by a Dynamo player, and there were a fair few, was loudly berated thereafter.
Their defiance was silenced by two Kyiv goals in the space of three minutes. Hundreds headed for the exits as Oleksandr Pikhalonok netted. Thousands more followed them when his fellow substitute Nazar Voloshyn added another soon after.
With an estimated £40m available to the teams which come through qualifying, the 3-1 aggregate reverse was a devastating blow to a club which is not exactly awash with cash just now.
