Rangers UEFA Champions League hopes were dealt a heavy blow at Ibrox after a shambolic first half gifted Club Brugge control of the tie.
A spirited second-half response at least spared total embarrassment, but Russell Martin’s side face a mountain to climb in Belgium.
Here’s what we learned from a bruising night in Govan.:
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Jayden Meghoma’s debut was a rare positive
Thrown in for his first start, the 19-year-old loanee showed glimpses of what he could become.
Meghoma wasn’t faultless, but he didn’t hide, put in a few solid challenges, and even combined well with Gassama to set up Danilo’s goal.
On a night of chaos, the youngster emerged with credit that his more experienced defensive partners do not have.
Gassama looks like the spark
If there’s one player who gave Brugge real problems, it was Djeidi Gassama.
Direct, brave and constantly willing to run at defenders, he was the main outlet all evening.
He created the goal, had another ruled out, and looks like he could be a genuine game-changer if given more service.
Defensive errors are killing Rangers
The opening 20 minutes were a disaster class. Nasser Djiga’s mix-up with Butland for the first goal was amateurish, while set-piece marking for the second was non-existent.
By the time Brandon Mechele lashed in the third, Ibrox was in open revolt.
The defending was every bit as bad as feared — and in Europe, you don’t get away with it.
Martin is finding out the hard way
This isn’t MK Dons, Swansea or Southampton. At Rangers, one bad half of football can turn a crowd.
By 20 minutes, Ibrox was booing; by half-time, thousands had left.
The toxic atmosphere echoed Michael Beale’s final days, and Martin now knows that at this club, excuses run out very quickly.
The tie feels gone already
Yes, Rangers rallied after the break. Danilo scored, Moahmmed Diomande nearly did and Gassama had one chalked off.
But the reality is that Brugge eased through the gears and still carved out chances.
A two-goal deficit away from home looks insurmountable for a team this brittle. Thursday nights in the Europa League may be the realistic horizon once again.