ALLAN McGregor became the fifth oldest man to play in the Champions League against Napoli at Ibrox last night and duly showed he has lost none of the ability which has made him one of Rangers’ greatest goalkeepers.
McGregor, at the age of 40 years and 226 days, produced two penalty saves in the second-half of a Group A game which Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side performed brilliantly in and deserved to take something out of.
But not even the veteran’s heroics between the sticks – he denied Piotr Zielinski twice in quick succession after James Sands had been sent off for a second bookable offence – could earn the Glasgow club a point for their efforts.
They were made to pay for their lack of ruthlessness in the final third when Matteo Politano finally netted from 12 yards out.
Strikes by Napoli substitutes Giacomo Raspadori and Tangay Ndombele late on, when their 10 men opponents were chasing the game and pushing bodies upfield, ensured a wretched end to the evening for the hosts.
Losing three games in succession will always pile pressure on a Rangers manager. But Van Bronckhorst, who went into this encounter on the back of heavy losses to Celtic and Ajax, went a long way towards redeemed himself with this showing.
His side’s display against the Serie A leaders, who thrashed Liverpool 4-1 at home last week, was reminiscent of those they produced during their run to the Europa League final last season.
James Tavernier and his team mates sit bottom of their section after two outings. But they can head down to Anfield after the international break confident of pulling off an upset and getting a result after this. They will certainly have faith in McGregor coping with whatever is thrown at him.
Van Bronckhorst made no fewer than five changes to the side that had been blown away in the Netherlands seven days earlier. Jon McLaughlin, Glen Kamara, Malik Tillman, Scott Wright and Antonio Colak all dropped out. They were replaced by McGregor, Ryan Jack, Steven Davis, Scott Arfield and Alfredo Morelos respectively.
McLaughlin had let in eight goals in his previous two outings. But he missed out because of a minor injury. McGregor made his first competitive appearance since the Premier Sports Cup win over Queen of the South at the end of last month and just his second start of the season.
The former Scotland internationalist has flourished on the European stage on numerous occasions in his lengthy career. Van Bronckhorst needed another big performance from him as Giovanni Simeone, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Politano were in the visitors front line. He got one.
Morelos was brought back in the hope that he could provide a much-needed spark in the final third. It was harsh on Colak. The Croat has netted seven times in 11 appearances in the 2022/23 campaign and he notched the winner in the play-off double header with PSV Eindhoven last month.
The Colombian, though, is Rangers’ all-time leading scorer in continental competition. That said, he had not kicked off a match in nearly six months. It was a gamble preferring him.
He had a gilt-edged opportunity to justify his selection in the very first minute, after just 32 seconds to be exact, when Tavernier found him in space in the middle of the visitors’ penalty box with a cross from wide on the right flank. He nodded wide. It was a bad miss and a bad start for him. He recovered well.
Napoli midfielder Zielinski almost made Rangers pay just two minutes later when he struck the outside of the post with a shot from the edge of their area. But that was one of very few meaningful attacks which the Italians launched in the opening 45 minutes.
John Lundstram dropped back into the backline his side proved far more difficult to break down than they had against both Celtic and Ajax. Their composure on the ball under pressure was impressive too. They seldom panicked and shelled clear to safety. Picking their passes allowed them to control possession for long periods.
Alex Meret was far busier than McGregor in the first-half. He pushed a long-range Arfield effort that was destined to finish in the top corner of his net wide for a corner early on and held a Tavernier header after the right back had cut inside and met a Borna Barisic delivery.
Morelos ran in and clattered Meret after he had claimed the ball. He received a yellow card from Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz for his overexuberance. The South American has always played, and will always play, on the edge. But he was performing brightly. He also tested the keeper after being supplied by Jack.
Ryan Kent was also much improved out wide. He jinked his way between Giovanni Di Lorenzo and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and cut the ball back to Tavernier. His skipper had his attempt blocked. However, Rangers were applauded off the park at half-time.
Van Bronckhorst’s charges started the second-half as they had finished the first. Kent, Jack and Tavernier combined well to set up Arfield. The midfielder failed to make a clean connection. Connor Goldson then went inches wide with a header after meeting a Kent cross.
When a side dominates to such a degree and fails to take advantage they always run the risk of being caught out by a sucker punch and they very nearly did. Only that man McGregor kept the scoreline level after Sands was sent off in the 55th minute. He brought down Simeone and gave away a penalty.
McGregor dived to his right and saved from Zielinski only for Politano to pounce on the rebound and fire through his legs. But the scorer had encroached into the area and the match official ordered a retake after a VAR check. Zielinski went the same way second time around, but so did McGregor.
The ground erupted and every man, woman and child in attendance was soon chanting the Scot’s name. Their hero was called upon to stop a third spot kick when Lahoz ruled that Barisic had handled a Simeone shot. On this occasion, Politano stepped forward. He made no mistake.
Van Bronckhorst threw on Leon King for Jack, Colak for Morelos, Matondo for Arfield, Kamara for Davis and Tillman for Tavernier. But Rangers’ numerical disadvantage showed as they went forward in numbers. Raspadori and Ndombele secured a second straight win for Napoli.
