Gerrard marvels at McGregor as ten-man Rangers keep hopes alive
STEVEN GERRARD saluted the heroics of his ten-man Rangers side and a ‘world-class’ Allan Mcgregor performance as they moved one win away from the Europa League knockout stage. After a tense night at Ibrox in which his team held firm after the dismissal of Daniel Candeias, gerrard admitted he was ‘wowed’ by Mcgregor following another goalkeeping masterclass that kept Villarreal at bay.
The stalemate means Rangers know
they will reach the last 32 with victory away to Rapid Vienna in their final Group G assignment on December 13. It looked like control of their own fate might slip away when Candeias was sent off for two cautions in the space of seven minutes late in the first half. But Gerrard’s men refused to relent in the second period. ‘It was a heroic night, I’m very proud of the players and Daniel Candeias has got a lot of friends in that dressing room,’ admitted the Ibrox boss. ‘Every single one of them rolled their sleeves up and dug in against a fantastic team full of top, top players. To compete against this level of opponent over two games and not lose makes me very proud and satisfied in the circumstances. ‘For sure, the players have set up an absolutely fantastic match in Vienna to reach the last 32 in Europe. ‘If we manage to do it, that will represent enormous strides. We have two weeks to prepare and hopefully we can come through the earlier games and go with a fully fit squad. ‘We’ll go and give it everything but I would have taken this position, certainly when Shkupi came here on the first step of this journey.’ Candeias received a first caution for a foul on Jaume Costa, then caught Santiago Caseres after a cluster of Rangers players closed in on the Villarreal midfielder. Slovenian referee Matej Jug produced another yellow card but only seemed to realise the Portuguese winger had already been booked after a consultation with his assistant. A supporter came on to the fringe of the pitch following that flashpoint — an incursion that is likely to prompt a UEFA sanction. ‘I’d like to see it again as I was over the other side of the pitch,’ said Gerrard of the red card. ‘Daniel feels hard done by.’ McGregor made two superb one-on-one saves from Karl Toko Ekambi during the first half and was a secure last line of a defence once Rangers were depleted. ‘Just one word — wow,’ grinned Gerrard. ‘Wow. I’m running out of things to say about him, he has been top class since day one, every single day in training and games. Just wow. Those saves tonight? They were world class.’ Gerrard denied suggestions Ovie Ejaria had been dropped as punishment for being late for training earlier this week. ‘It was tactical,’ he insisted.