Rangers have won the first leg in the third qualifying round of the Champions League. In the Ibrox Stadium, the team of manager Michael Beale was 2-1 too strong for the Swiss Servette FC. There was a leading role for Cyriel Dessers, who accounted for the 2-0 and caused a penalty kick that resulted in the 2-1. The visitors ended the game with ten men after a red card for David Douline, but Rangers failed to exploit the surplus situation and kept Servette alive. The winner of the diptych will meet PSV in the play-offs.
Beale chose three names for a vanguard that have a recent past in the Eredivisie. The right wing position was given substance by Sam Lammers, who was taken over from Atalanta at the beginning of July. Danilo, who came over from Feyenoord, was positioned on the other side, although he had to leave the field halfway through the second half in favor of Abdallah Sima. Dessers was the deepest striker.
?? GOAL! Rangers 2-0 Napkin
?? Cyriel Dessers introduces himself with a fine finish.
?? Bet It All 200€ Welcome Bonus – https://t.co/eqWX0TkxqM pic.twitter.com/HWWnTJpyB7— FootColic ?? (@FootColic) August 9, 2023
The score was already opened by Rangers in the sixth minute of play. Referee Donatas Rumsas punished a foul by Douline in the sixteen-meter area and resolutely pointed to the penalty spot. The eleven-meter opportunity was used by Tavernier: 1-0. After fifteen minutes of play, it was Dessers’ turn. A cross from the left from Borna Barisic was not hit by anyone, allowing the completely released Dessers to tap in the 2-0 from close range.
On the stroke of the halftime signal, Servette came back into the game. Dessers made an unfortunate handball in his own sixteen, so that Rumsas could do nothing but award a penalty kick to the Swiss. Chris Bedia made no mistake from the penalty spot: 2-1. A few minutes after Lammers tested goalkeeper Joel Mall’s reflexes with a shot into the bottom left corner, Servette was left with ten men. Douline committed a foul and received a second yellow card.
Twenty minutes before the final whistle, Dessers had an excellent opportunity to reduce the advantageous margin to two goals, but Mall made a great save on the effort of the former striker of Feyenoord, among others. In the remainder of the second half, Rangers continued to look for a third goal, although it was no longer found.