KING OF THE HILLS
Clement’s summit special as bold Gers almost leave Portuguese with mountain to climb
THEY call Lisbon the City of Seven Hills – but Rangers must surely believe they are on the brink of summit special if they can once more hit the heights they managed last night.
It’s only sheer rotten luck that Benfica are not heading to Ibrox next week for the second leg with a mountain to climb after a display from Philippe Clement’s side that was as daring as it was brave.
Twice Gers led the Portuguese giants as they threatened to leave a team still reeling from Sunday’s 5-0 Porto pasting in the shade at the Estadio da Luz.
In the end, they couldn’t hold on to Tom Lawrence’s opener or Dujon Sterling’s first ever senior goal.
It was more than a little ironic that the Eagles were twice able to hit back thanks to Angel Di Maria’s dead-ball abilities given he’d barely had a sniff of escaping the impressive Ridvan Yilmaz in open play.
But he was able to stroke home a penalty after tempting John Souttar into a penalty box hand-ball with a corner before his free-kick midway through the second half squirmed off Connor Goldson’s head before flying past Jack Butland.
Goldson must be sick of the sight of Benfica’s iconic home ground having also put through his own net when Rangers last trudged up the slopes of the Portuguese capital under Steven Gerrard back in 2020.
But Gers will firmly believe that with a pumped-up Ibrox behind them next Thursday they can find a way through to the last eight.
Mind you, some Ibrox fans have come to the conclusion that the Europa League is a distraction their Premiership pacesetters can currently do without.
You have to wonder if they’ve changed their tune now afters seeing their team produce yet another magnificent display in a tournament they are growing attached to.
Clement was certainly adamant he sees no reason to choose between success at home and abroad but even the gaffer had to confess he’d arrived in Portugal short on options.
Ross McCausland declared himself fit despite limping off in Saturday’s shock loss to Motherwell – but only enough for a seat on the bench.
And with eight first-team stars injured or ineligible, it meant the Ibrox line-up pretty much picked itself.
Fabio Silva slotted in on the left wing to face a side he spent two years with as a kid while Lawrence also returned in place of Nico Raskin. Clement made a pre-match vow that he wouldn’t park the bus. And true to his word, it was his side who quickly found top gear.
They had an early scare before their opener when German ref Tobias Stieler ignored James Tavernier’s claims of a foul by David Neres, leaving the Benfica wideman free to force Butland into a fine one-handed stop.
But Rangers soon put the boot down as they grabbed a stunning seventh-minute opener.
Some clever link-up between Silva and Mohamed Diomande sent the
Ivory Coast midfield ace down the right-hand side.
His cross was one of those ones that was just asking for a firm connection and Lawrence duly obliged as he arrived unmarked 12 yards out, thudding a bullet header down past Anatoliy Trubin.
Gers were a touch fortunate not to be pegged back swiftly when Butland pushed a Neres shot back into traffic but Souttar’s last-ditch block took the heat off Arthur Cabral’s follow-up before the ball dropped gratefully into the grounded Ibrox keeper’s grasp.
Di Maria was quickly emerging as Benfica’s biggest threat. His set-piece deliveries were packed with menace and always whipping wickedly into the six-yard box.
Don’t bet on him getting a late call for this weekend’s Oscar ceremony after his playacting failed to fool the officials into a penalty award after going down at Goldson’s feet.
But just as Gers were starting to look towards the tunnel as half-time approached, they found themselves back level and it was all down to another Di Maria dead-ball special.
Again curled with pace and bend towards the near post, it caught Souttar by surprise as he headed the ball against his own hand.
It’s a nonsense rule but Stieler had no option but to award the spot-kick when called over by VAR and Di Maria nonchalantly made the chance stick in the second minute of stoppage time
as he gave Butland the eyes. It was a blow to Clement’s team – but they refused to bow to it and sensationally raged back in front just seconds later.
Tavernier rolled the ball to Silva down the left, cutting back inside he fired a low cross through the legs of former Benfica academy pal Joao Neves before Sterling burst through a ruck of bodies to slam an effort past the stunned Trubin.
It was a frantic end to the first period and the second began in ragged fashion for Rangers when Tavernier had to bail out a John Lundstram mistake with a vital tackle on Neres.
But Benfica were hardly brimming with fresh inspiration as repeated breakdowns drew jeers from their increasingly fed-up fans.
The mood around the place was turning toxic as Silva broke into the box but Trubin spared a supporter meltdown with a decent stop.
But the home crowd were soon smiling as Gers gifted the equaliser.
Yilmaz thought he was doing his team a favour when he took a booking, halting a Benfica attack. But Di Maria’s tempting delivery lured Goldson into a fatal mistake as his miscued header flew past Butland.
Another loose Lundstram pass set the hosts free again but from open play Di Maria wasn’t quite so effective as he tugged a huge chance wide.
With so many first-team stars out, Clement had to turn to academy kid Cole McKinnon with 15 minutes left.
But the 21-year-old justified his inclusion as he threw himself in front of a Di Maria strike to ensure it’s all to play for in the second leg.