Volume on full power to create a sonic boom
THE night began with Rangers turning off the power in a bid to turn up the volume. It ended with a crackle of pure electricity.
Union Saint-Gilloise felt the shock alright. They were left with hair standing on end and skeletons glowing visible like in one of those old cartoons. Welcome to the Ibrox experience, lads.
This is what Giovanni van Bronckhorst had been banking on. Another European occasion when fans and players joined to create that shimmering and unstoppable energy seen so often on the road to Seville.
Here it was again. Rescuing their Champions League ambitions amid drama, tension and just a little chaos. After being utterly lifeless in Leuven seven days earlier, Rangers were a team re-animated. Union ultimately cowered in front of this new creation.
Assessing the match a couple of days beforehand, their captain Teddy Teuma claimed the atmosphere here was ‘not a problem’. The evidence in front of his eyes last night said differently. Pitching up on Edmiston Drive has diminished better teams than last season’s Jupiler Pro League runners-up.
Rangers had urged supporters to get here early as they planned to switch off the PA before kick-off and let the crowd create the ‘world famous’ environment to unsettle their visitors.
In truth, that little ploy didn’t actually work very well. With fans still streaming through the turnstiles under warm sunshine, it required a familiar blast of Simply The Best when the teams emerged to properly increase the decibels.
The volume rarely dropped thereafter, though. A crowd of 48,454 revelled in the ebb and flow of an historic comeback. And in some of the performances that made it happen.
This was a coming-of-age night for Malik Tillman. A persistent menace to Union, the Bayern Munich loanee scored the critical third goal and was given the sponsors’ man-of-the-match award. It could easily have gone to another newcomer in Tom Lawrence, who was megawatt bright throughout. Then there was John Lundstram.
At a Zoom media conference on Monday, Lundstram accused Union of lacking respect in their over-enthusiastic reaction to that 2-0 first-leg success. He was clearly itching to put things right. And he did so with gusto. Given huge responsibility in central midfield, the Englishman was a driving force in achieving the turnaround.
Rangers really shouldn’t have put themselves in such a tough position. Union are a pretty limited bunch. For sure, a far tougher challenge now awaits in the play-off round against PSV Eindhoven. With Ibrox at their backs, though, there can always be hope.
Van Bronckhorst boasts an almost flawless record of bringing thunder to this ground on European occasions. His very first game in charge, on November 25 last year, saw a 2-0 win over Sparta Prague to secure a place in the Europa League knock-out rounds. Alfredo Morelos scored both goals that night to grant his new manager a perfect start. Borussia Dortmund then presented a towering hurdle. Rangers wobbled a little at 2-1 down before James Tavernier’s second goal of the second leg threatened to rearrange the stadium’s foundations.
The noise didn’t dip below epic thereafter. Red Star Belgrade were blitzed 3-0 before an extra-time comeback win over 10-man Braga that twanged nerves like guitar strings.
Then it was RB Leipzig. If many Rangers fans still cannot bear to watch the highlights from Seville, the game that got them there is seared forever in their memories as one of the greatest of all the nights this old ground has staged. The sonic boom following Lundstram’s winning strike was eclipsed by the one triggered at the final whistle. Management, backroom staff, players and supporters were united in a transcendent mix of intense joy and partial disbelief.
It was a sound, a celebration, that will echo on through the recollections of those who were there. In each of their last six home European games, dating back to the visit of Brondby when Steven Gerrard was manager, Rangers had scored two or more goals. There was a clear track record to inspire optimism. Elements of last night’s team selection did likewise.
In particular, the return of Ryan Kent. Absent for the last two games because of an ankle issue, the £7million winger was promoted straight into the starting line-up after coming through training unscathed. Rangers needed the irrepressible Kent, who tormented Dortmund and others last term. Star performers had to shine.
Another of those, fit-again Morelos, began on the bench as Antonio Colak retained his place up front. The Croatian had two big headed chances before the break. Fractional distances and goalkeeping excellence decided that neither was taken. He would have his moment from close range to level the tie in the second half.
Van Bronckhorst’s midfield make-up was particularly intriguing. Despite a fine display in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Kilmarnock, Steven Davis lost his place as the orchestrator.
Lundstram was there to offer solidity but putting Lawrence and Scott Arfield into that central zone spoke of the need for as many attacking outlets as possible.
Lawrence did all he could to try and influence the first half, looking busy and curling one low strike narrowly wide of Anthony Moris’s right-hand post. Arfield found it more difficult to pick up pockets of space. In part, that was because Union were sitting as deep as a Premiership struggler visiting Ibrox in desperate need of a point to avoid relegation. It looked as though they would edge to the interval with their advantage intact but then Siebe van der Heyden crazily thrust up a hand to concede a 45th-minute penalty. What a gift for Rangers. It wasn’t wasted as Tavernier converted with finesse.
Union sought to press more aggressively as the second half opened but Colak and Tillman struck them down. When the final whistle sounded, the ‘I’m Feeling It’ anthem blared out once again.
And they were feeling it. From the stands to the pitch. Another electrifying Ibrox night was complete.