| Rangers 1-0 Bursaspor Rangers will not win many prizes for artistic merit during their Champions League campaign, which will hardly come as a shock, but in securing a single-goal victory last night Walter Smith's team ended an utterly dismal run.At the start of this match Rangers were without a win over 90 minutes in Europe since April 2008.Their last three points in the Champions League had come six months before that in Lyon. Although Bursaspor will not be making deep progress in this competition, this was a notable success and four points from two matches represents a useful position for the Scottish champions.Rangers were rarely troubled, in what represented the latest achievement for a defence marshalled by the 40-year-old David Weir. A curious aspect was that hardly anything of note occurred at all, beyond Steven Naismith's crucial goal."You can't pick up your morning paper and see our Champions League record, then all of a sudden say things have changed," said Smith, the Rangers manager. "They haven't. We have a hard struggle ahead so we are just happy to have got this win and gained a little bit of confidence."Rangers' tactic of deploying five defenders at Old Trafford a fortnight ago had the desired effect for Smith, his team returning north with a scoreless draw. Few observers, however, had expected the manager to retain that template for a home game.Yet that's exactly what Smith did, Kenny Miller operating in what has become his familiar role for club and country as a lone striker. The harrowing Ibrox Champions League encounters of last season, which Rangers lost by an aggregate of 10-2, had merely endorsed Smith's will to implement a pragmatic approach this time around.Smith had been keen to emphasise Bursaspor's attacking talent in advance of kick-off. What he had failed to mention was the Turks' glaring generosity in defence, which had been highlighted by an earlier 4-0 defeat by Valencia.The visiting goalkeeper, Dimitar Ivankov, had already miscalculated attempts to collect two crosses before he committed a more serious error, which handed Naismith the game's only goal. Steven Whittaker had found Kirk Broadfoot with a deep cross, which the full-back headed down into Naismith's path.Ivankov was the clear favourite to win the ball but his latest poor effort was punished by Naismith, who prodded home at the near post.Bursaspor's response didn't amount to much. Gokcek Vederson tested Allan McGregor with a fierce, 30-yard free-kick before Lee McCulloch survived a half-hearted penalty appeal on account of alleged handball inside the Rangers penalty area.Smith's biggest worry, in fact, would have been how his players would mentally handle their lead, given the troubles of recent times in Europe.Naismith could have settled his team-mates down, had he not screwed a volley wide, 10 minutes before the interval.Miller came even closer to doubling Rangers' lead – and should have done – within 60 seconds of the restart. This time Ivankov atoned for his earlier mistake by saving with his legs when one-on-one with the forward.Champions LeagueRangersBursasporEwan Murrayguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Panathanaikos 0 Copenhagen 2: match report Dame N'Doye returns to haunt former club Panathinaikos by helping the Danish champions to a surprise 2-0 win. telegraph.co.uk |
Fury snatch late win over Glory North Queensland Fury snatched a late 2-1 win over Perth Glory in extremely wet conditions at Dairy Farmers Stadium on Friday night. foxsports.com.au |
Bolton Wanderers 2-1 Stoke City | Premier League match report A close-range volley from the substitute Ivan Klasnic in added time gave Bolton victory in a committed, occasionally controversial, but always entertaining match.Remarkably the Croatian, who came on in the 77th minute, also managed to pick up two yellow cards before the final whistle, ensuring his brief appearance was unforgettable in more ways than one."That's what you call making an impression," the Bolton manager, Owen Coyle, said before suggesting the second booking, incurred when Klasnic competed for a header with Rory Delap, was "very harsh".The visitors had just begun to look threatening when they conceded. Lee Chung-yong picked up the ball on the right and, although his attempt to complete a one-two with Kevin Davies was blocked by Abdoulaye Faye, the ball rebounded kindly for the South Korean on the edge of the penalty area to curl a first-time shot beyond the dive of the goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen.Bolton looked a good bet to increase their advantage but Stoke almost levelled when Jermaine Pennant curled a 23-yard free-kick against the bar. Unlucky on that occasion, Stoke were distinctly hard done by a few minutes later when Zat Knight's attempt to head clear resulted in the ball hitting his raised arm. To the disgust of the Stoke manager Tony Pulis, the referee Peter Walton turned down the penalty appeals.Bolton might have scored twice in first-half added time: Martin Petrov's cleanly hit drive was touched away by Sorensen, and then Kevin Davies headed wide from the six-yard line.Instead, parity was restored within three minutes of the restart. Petrov, trying to be too clever, gave away possession on the edge of his own penalty area, resulting in the concession of a corner. Pennant's delivery was flicked on by Robert Huth for Delap, coming in at the far post, to thrash past the Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen.With both sides pressing for the win, Johan Elmander pulled an angled shot across Sorensen's goal, and Jaaskelainen watched with relief as a Danny Collins header bounced just wide. The newly capped England striker Davies missed a sitter with minutes to go, but then Klasnic, on for Elmander swivelled on to the ball as it bounced down following a long throw to send the home supporters into raptures."I'm disappointed because the first half was as well as we've played," Pulis admitted afterwards. "We could have been awarded three penalties, but you take it on the chin. Given the number of times we've scored as a result of a long throw, I can hardly complain about their winner, can I?" Premier LeagueBolton WanderersStoke Cityguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Liverpool takeover: John W Henry and NESV must now win battle for hearts and minds Liverpool fans cautious over arrival of New England Sports Ventures. telegraph.co.uk |