Rangers FC - 07/08 European campaign

[LAF]

Group E

Rangers FC (Scotland) Barcelona (Spain) Vfb Stuttgart (Germany) Olympique Lyonnias (France)

[bluetoon]

loved the draw i think we might surprise lyon and stutgart watched lyon on t.v against socaux b4 draw and they dont seem to be the same team they have been over the last 3 years.

[barracuda]

Rediculously difficult draw for you guys, but you'll certainly have some very exciting games to look forward to All the best of luck

[DavidMc]

With our first game coming up this Wednesday against Stuttgart at Ibrox, its important that we get off to a good start. We must take full points from home matches if we are going to have a chance of qualifying from our group.

Saturdays defeat against Hearts was a major disappointment, more so because of the performance, but I think this was a minor set-back and possibly a wake-up call for a couple of players.

Smith will field a different starting line-up and the McCulloch and Ferguson will return to the starting 11.

[bluetoon]

defo need ferguson and mcculloch back in amdy faye as i suspected isnt god enough to wear he jersey and should not get another game he was not any better at newcastle or charlton.i would play novo up front with boyd i think big cousin looked slow and unfit yesterday so better going with boyd up front so nacho can win the flick ons or any stray balls that come his way.

[DavidMc]

Rangers 2-1 VFB Stuttgart

Rangers opened their Champions League campaign with a valuable three points after a spirited fightback at Ibrox.

Mario Gomez fired the visitors ahead early in the second half, deflecting a fizzing cross home from close range.

But Charlie Adam curled in a delicious equaliser soon after, following a fantastic run from Alan Hutton.

Jean Claude Darcheville smashed in a 74th minute penalty to seal the victory after Hutton's strong run ended with the defender being fouled.

After a shaky start, Rangers were unlucky to fall behind but came roaring back in fine style to clinch a deserved win.

Rangers skipper Barry Ferguson passed a late fitness test, while Brahim Hemdani and Adam were recalled to bolster a five-man midfield.

Despite a defensive set-up from the home side, they were under pressure in the early stages, with Stuttgart moving the ball around with confidence.

There was a scare when Carlos Cuellar intercepted a dangerous low cross and the Ibrox centre-half's clearance clipped the outside of Allan McGregor's post.

Jeronimo Baretto Cacau fizzed a dipping shot over the top and McGregor saved a weak close range effort from Ricardo Osorio before an angled drive from Gomez flashed narrowly wide.

A slack back-pass gave Kevin Thomson a chance but visiting keeper Raphael Schafer recovered from a slip to slide in bravely and deny the Rangers midfielder.

Schafer was busy again when he had to parry an ambitious shot from out wide by the hard working Darcheville.

Adam tried his luck with a half-volley from 35 yards, which dipped just over the crossbar.

His quick free-kick then set up Ferguson for a header in front of goal only for the captain to glance wide, with the German defence caught napping.

Darcheville brushed off two challenges to charge into the penalty area but Schafer was off his line swiftly to block the lone striker's stabbed shot.

Following that period of Rangers pressure, Stuttgart managed to dampen the threat of Walter Smith's side with some prolonged spells of possession.

Before the break, the lively Cacau managed to steer in an acrobatic overhead kick from 18 yards but it went straight at McGregor.

With Ferguson off the field after a clash of heads, Rangers fell behind on 55 minutes.

Sami Khedira's low delivery skidded into the penalty area and Gomez stuck out a leg to divert the ball beyond McGregor.

Hutton immediately charged forward and tried his luck with a long range strike that was not too far away.

The full-back was the driving force behind the equaliser, with another great surge to the edge of the penalty area before slipping the ball to Adam, who cut inside a defender and curled a sweet strike into the far corner of the net.

McGregor then used an outstretched leg to keep out a Cacau shot after some sloppy defending from Cuellar.

Steven Whittaker slashed a shot wide after a neat lay-off from Darcheville had opened up the goal.

But Rangers were not to be denied and the impressive Hutton won a penalty when he was crudely upended by Fernando Meira.

Darcheville slammed the spot-kick home to send the Ibrox crowd wild with delight.

Ferguson went close to stretching Rangers' advantage with a fierce shot in the 88th minute but Schafer got his fingertips to the ball.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rangers: McGregor, Hutton, Cuellar, Weir, Papac, Hemdani, Whittaker (Faye 86), Ferguson, Adam (Beasley 67), Thomson, Darcheville (Novo 83). Subs Not Used: Carroll, Boyd, Broadfoot, Cousin.

Booked: Hutton, Thomson, Faye.

Goals: Adam 62, Darcheville 75 pen.

VfB Stuttgart: Schafer, Osorio, Tasci, Fernando Meira, Boka, Pardo, Hilbert, Khedira (Basturk 77), Da Silva (Ewerthon 70), Cacau, Gomez. Subs Not Used: Langer, Beck, Farnerud, Marica, Pischorn.

Booked: Fernando Meira, Pardo.

Goal: Gomez 56.

Att: 49,795

Ref: Stefano Farina (Italy).

A great start for Rangers. Winning home games is always important in this competition and it was important we got off to a winning start. A deserved victory and hopefully we can take something in France against Lyon.

[DavidMc]

Rangers v Stuttgart match pictures

[Doc-Bhoy]

Haha Ferguson looks like hes doing ballet

[DavidMc]

Another massive game this Wednesday against Barcelona. Im expecting our defence to be put under constant pressure in this game, maybe even more than the game at Ibrox.

In the first game, we managed to settle down and get on the ball more in the second half, but theres no doubt that Barcelona dominated the game. We go to the Nou Camp with some key players returning (Darcheville, Hemdani) and these two players will be very important to us.

If we are to take anything from this game, we need the whole team to put in a massive shift. No-one expects us to take anything so hopefully we can surprise them. Walter Smith will probably play with Darcheville as the lone striker as he has the pace and physical presence to cause some trouble.

Going to be a very tough game but thats what the Champions League is all about.

[DavidMc]

We went to the Nou Camp hoping to take something, but never really expected anything. Barcelona played well, we just couldnt get out of our half. Next game against Stuttgart and this will be another tough game.

I think we are capable of going to Germany and taking something from the game.

Hopefully Barcelona will take something at Lyon.

[DavidMc]

So it goes down to the last game against Lyon at Ibrox. Would have accepted a point in Germany against Stuttgart, but it ended up that it wouldnt have made much of a difference.

Thought after going 0-1 ahead that we might take all 3 points but it wasnt to be.

Im confident that we can qualify at Ibrox. We will need a full strength team. Hopefully Darcheville will be fit for this game because he can cause any team problems.

[DavidMc]

Rangers will face Greek outfit Panathanaikos in the last 32 of the Uefa Cup.
The Greek side finished second in Aberdeen's qualifying group, beating the Pittodrie club 3-0 in Greece.

The winners will play either Werder Bremen or Braga in the last 16 of this season's tournament.

Rangers manager Walter Smith said he expected a "difficult tie" against Panathaikos and that he expected a hostile atmosphere in Greece.

Smith said he hoped his side could go further in the tournament this season, after losing to Osasuna at the last 16 stage last term.

"It's a difficult one, in the sense that going away to any of the Greek teams is always going to be difficult," he said.

"There's always a very hostile atmosphere in the matches. They are always a good standard of team.

"We've already seen that when they played Aberdeen - so it'll be a tough enough draw."

The Rangers manager said his players faced a considerable number of games before their Uefa Cup double-header.

"I think once it comes around everyone will look forward to it, and look forward to trying to get a run in the UEFA Cup," Smith said.

"We've got the home game first, and then have to go away - and I would always more preferably have it the other way around.

"We'll just try to handle that the best we can."

Aberdeen manager Jimmy Calderwood backed Rangers to triumph over the Greek side.

"I don't think Rangers' game is quite as tough as ours against Bayern, but Panathinaikos is a hard place to go," he said.

"With all due respect, if Rangers play to their best I expect them to beat the Greeks. It would have been better if they were away first though.

"The Panathinaikos game is the biggest disappointment of our Uefa Cup campaign as we let ourselves down badly there.

"We dominated for long spells yet lost 3-0 to counter-attacks, and we lost the ball in silly situations. Rangers, if they play it right, can win the tie."



Rangers moved into the Uefa Cup after finishing third in Champions League Group E, behind Barcelona and second-placed Lyon.

Not a bad draw. Over the disappointment from the Champions League. Hopefully we can have a decent run in the UEFA Cup.

Overall, we can take a lot of postives from the Champions League campaign.

[DavidMc]

After a tough couple of games against Panathinaikos in the UEFA Cup, we have now progressed into the last 16 thanks again to a Nacho Novo goal in europe. He always seems to score vital goals for us.

Rangers now face Werder Bremen in the next fixture. With the first leg in Glasgow, I'm hoping we can secure some sort of result against Bremen. We have shown we can play in europe and hopefully we will have a fully-fit squad for this one. The main priority this season is the return of the SPL Title to Ibrox, but I think we can progress in the UEFA Cup. Werder Bremen are a class side but theres no reason why we cant go through to the last 8.

[DavidMc]

Next up.......Sporting Lisbon. Bonus the first game is at Ibrox. The further we go in the UEFA Cup the more id like to win it. The league is always the priority but we have reached the 1/4 finals of this competition so theres no reason why we cant go a couple of stages further.

The teams that are left are all class sides, Bayern Munich are still obviously the favourites to go all the way.

[DavidMc]

One game to go..................

No matter what happens, the team has done amazing this season. I want the league more than anything else. But now that we are one game away from a euro final, I really want us to get there.

It will be tough in Florence, but we can do it. We have started looking very very tired recently, hopefully we can get to the finish line and win at least the treble.

Will be a boost to have Thomson and Ferguson back next week. Our midfield just wasnt in the game on Thursday night.