Derek McInnes’s fledgling tenure as Rangers manager is in disarray after his side exited the Europa League qualifiers with a 3-2 aggregate defeat to Jagiellonia Bialystok following a 1-1 draw at Ibrox. Rangers had lost 2-1 in the first leg in Poland last week, but there was initial optimism when captain Lawrence Shankland levelled the aggregate tie with a penalty in the 19th minute.
However, the visitors deservedly equalised in the 65th minute through attacker Nik Prelec. The disjointed home side failed to regain a foothold in the match despite various changes in formation and personnel, with boos ringing out around the stadium at full time from fans frustrated by the team’s dismal start to the season.
McInnes has now failed to register a win in four competitive matches since moving from Hearts this summer. This dispiriting performance means Rangers will now face the Czech side Jablonec in the Conference League playoff round.
Hearts, meanwhile, restored some pride in a 1-1 draw with Benfica as they also exited the Europa League. Tómas Magnússon had the home fans dreaming of a famous win after firing in the opener in the 77th minute. However, the Portuguese giants, cruising from a 6-1 first-leg victory, levelled less than a minute later through Dodi Lukébakio to secure a 7-2 aggregate triumph.
It was nevertheless an encouraging display from Wouter Vrancken’s side against a team that made seven changes from the first leg. The consolation for Hearts is a place in the Conference League playoffs, where they are set to face Rapid Vienna of Austria.
Elsewhere, David Gray revealed his Hibernian players had their heads in ice buckets as he lauded them for “an incredible achievement” after closing out a 2-1 aggregate victory over Shkendija. The result sets up a Conference League playoff round showdown with the Belgian side Gent. The two teams played out a tightly contested 0-0 draw in the second leg in the searing heat of the Todor Proeski National Arena.
“I’m delighted for the players,” the Hibs manager told BBC Sport. “It’s a brilliant time to get your first clean sheet of the season. I just said to the players, don’t underestimate how big an achievement that is against a really good side who made it to the knockout stages of the competition last season. Added to that, the conditions, the heat, we had to deal with all these things. I don’t think it was a brilliant game, but we put our bodies on the line and the attitude was there.” The report also notes that rangers had lost 2-1 in the first leg in Poland last week but there was optimism when the captain, Lawrence Shankland, levelled the tie on aggregate with a penalty on 19 minutes.
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