Rangers staged a well-earned comeback against Olympiacos in the UEFA Europa League last night (Thursday), after which Greek media has heaped praise on the Ibrox side.
After a sticky first period, Ayoub El Kaabi fired the home side in front on 56 minutes before Cyriel Dessers restored parity on the scoreboard eight minutes later.
Now halfway through the new-look competition's eight fixtures, Philippe Clement's men sit in a respectable 10th place, just two places and, at the moment, two points away from the automatically-qualifying top eight.
In the aftermath of the match, Gazzetta Greece praised Rangers' 'tactical discipline', describing the visitors as organised in their defensive structure, which in turn limited Olympiacos' attacking opportunities.
The publication also highlighted Rangers' scope to "disrupt Olympiacos' rhythm through effective pressing and midfield dominance"; and likewise hailed their resilience and adaptability, "particularly their swift response in equalizing after conceding".
All told, the Gazzetta Greece report was impressed with Rangers' game management, securing a point that puts them well on their way towards progressing further into the tournament with four league-phase games remaining.
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In his Instant Analysis after the full-time whistle, Joshua Barrie offered a brief assessment of the earlier stages of the game.
He said: "The return of Robin Propper may not have been a universally popular choice amongst supporters but it was not a huge surprise from Clement.
"There are concerns over how well equipped the Dutchman is to handle the tough and tumble nature of Scottish football but the return to European action offered Propper a chance to play himself back into form.
"At half-time, it was a case of so far so good and it could be viewed as a typical away day performance. Rangers were relatively untroubled in the first 45 minutes and captain for the night Jack Butland had little to do. There were moments where Clement’s side were loose in possession but they were not punished, with a Gelson Martins effort that was fired into the near post one of the few transition phases looked threatening in.
"Ten minutes after the restart, the hosts had the breakthrough as El Kaabi scored for the fourth time in as many matches in this competition. The Rangers defence was sucked towards a dinked ball over the top and John Souttar left El Kaabi free in space to meet a Chiquinho header. The finish from inside the area was clinical and accomplished but a rare moment of quality from the Greeks."
