Cyriel Dessers celebrates scoring for RangersSNS

Cyriel Dessers' goal was enough to earn Rangers a potentially precious point

Martin Dowden
BBC Sport Scotland in Piraeus

Cyriel Dessers rescued a precious Europa League point for Rangers as they came from behind to hold Conference League holders Olympiakos in an intimidating atmosphere in Greece.

The Belgian striker, who missed two gilt-edged first-half chances, pounced on a defensive error, created space and fired into the corner from the edge of the area to reward an impressive away performance from Philippe Clement's side.

The draw leaves the Ibrox side on seven points with a trip to Nice to follow at the end of November, followed by meetings with Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United.

The pre-match headline was captain James Tavernier dropping to the bench and it was clear Clement wanted his side to be well structured and hit effectively on the counter. They managed that so effectively throughout.

As the hosts tried to build pressure, Rangers pounced on a number of occasions. Dessers was sent clear down the left and raced in on goal, but lacked the required conviction and fired a poor effort straight at Kostas Tzolakis.

Another, even better chance, arrived shortly after. Dujon Sterling found Vaclav Cerny, who in turn laid it into Dessers, but he could only fire straight at the goalkeeper once again from six yards. The frustration was palpable.

Olympiakos continued to try and mount pressure but Rangers remained solid, restricting them to half-chances as they continued to pick their opponents off.

Jose Luis Mendilibar tinkered at half time and got a quick response. The, until then, subdued star striker Ayoub El Kaabi checked, found acres of space and swivelled to fire a brilliant shot off the underside of the bar beyond the exposed Jack Butland.

The noise - and threat - rose considerably but Rangers responded. And it was Dessers who found his shooting boots with a crisp finish.

The game opened up but neither side could find a winner.

Rangers will be by far the happier, though, as they took a significant step towards potentially securing progression to the latter stages of the competition.

Accomplished Rangers earn excellent point

SNS

The omission of Tavernier was a big statement given the hostile environment. The captain's experience was presumably overlooked in favour of his form.

Clement said his side would have to raise their level but his players did to earn a fantastic result which could even have been better.

It was a very encouraging display against an - on paper - strong team in a really intimidating atmosphere.

That Rangers made Olympiakos look decidedly average was to their credit, particularly given their own recent up and down form.

Tactically the intent was clear - to hit quickly on the counter and be solid. It was extremely effective, though Dessers' lack of conviction and when handed clear cut chances looked likely to be costly.

His response was emphatic at the vital moment and builds a bit of momentum at a vital time.

Questions will be asked over Tavernier's omission, particularly given that when Sterling hobbled off, it was Neraysho Kasanwirjo who was introduced rather than the club captain.

The next step for Rangers is to consistently deliver wins. The confidence they should take from this should aid that.

Olympiakos underwhelm despite Euro credentials

The Greek fans generated an almighty noise but were let down by their underwhelming side.

The Conference League holders had a lot of attacking intent but failed to cut Rangers open in the first half and Butland was rarely tested.

Many of the best chances fell to the visitors as Olympiakos struggled to generate genuine opportunities.

Their goal was a brilliant individual finish from El Kaabi, but they just lacked the sort of threat you would have anticipated, roared on by that intense crowd. They were unhappy come full-time.

Olympiakos have not lost at home since March but, as the game wore on, there was no onslaught from them.

They sit on seven points alongside Rangers who were, for the most part, comfortable on the night.

What they said

Rangers: 'Mentality I want to see every game' - Philippe Clement

Rangers manager Philippe Clement: "A very strong performance as a team, sticking to the plan, being very disciplined and using the spaces.

"I'm disappointed we didn't win the game, that's the next step we need to take. But I saw a lot of positive things and I need to praise the whole team for that.

"I don't want players happy with a point. We went for the three points and that's the mentality I want to see against any opponent.

"Our midfield was massive today. Our defence was really solid. Jack [Butland] didn't have to make many saves."

Match stats

  • Olympiakos have lost just one of their last eight home matches in major European competition (W6 D1). Since the start of last season, no side have avoided defeat in more home games than the Greeks (8).

  • Rangers are unbeaten in their last five away matches in the Europa League (W2 D3), equalling their longest such run in the competition’s history (also five unbeaten between October 2020 – March 2021).

  • Ayoub El Kaabi has scored 18 goals across 19 games for Olympiakos in all major European competition - more than any other player start of last season.

  • Vaclav Cerny has four goal involvements in his first four Europa League appearances for Rangers (two goals, two assists) – the most of any Rangers player across their first four games in the competition.

  • Rangers’ Cyriel Dessers has been directly involved in 10 goals across 13 away appearances in major European competitions (8 goals, 2 assists). That is more than twice as many involvements as he has managed in home games in such competition (4 goals, 0 assists in 13 home games).

  • Rangers (26y 80d) named their fourth ever lineup in the Europa League. It was their youngest in the competition since a 3-4 defeat to Spartak Moscow in the 2018-19 edition (25y 269d).

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