Rangers 1 - 3 Panathinaikos

Rangers 1-3 Panathinaikos

JamieMcDonald/GettyImages

Stephen Hughes battles with Panathinaikos' Raimondas Zutautas

Scoring Summary
Rangers	Panathinaikos
Michael Mols (28)	Raimondas Zutautas (32)
	Angelos Basinas (62)
	Michalis Konstantinou (80)

Match Information

Stadium: Ibrox Stadium, Scotland Attendance: 48,588 Match Time: 14:45 ET Official(s): Herbert Fandel (Referee)

Teams
Rangers	Panathinaikos
1 Stefan Klos	1 Antonis Nikopolidis
15 Zurab Khizanishvili	2 Rene Henriksen
2 Fernando Ricksen	8 Giannis Goumas
21 Maurice Ross	3 Nasief Morris
25 Henning Berg	20 Angelos Basinas
18 Michael Ball	5 Giourkas Seitaridis
27 Stephen Hughes	22 Miltiadis Sapanis
30 Chris Burke	6 Markus Munch
10 Michael Mols	14 Raimondas Zutautas
26 Peter Lovenkrands	18 Lucian Sanmartean
20 Nuno Capucho	19 Michalis Konstantinou
Substitutes
22 Allan McGregor	Stefanos Kotsolis 33
16 Paolo Vanoli	Jan Michaelsen 35
40 Steven Smith	Joel Epalle 10
12 Robert Malcolm	Pantelis Konstantinidis 27
18 Billy Gibson	Xenofon Gitas 21
9 Egil Ostenstad	Goran Vlaovic 7
38 Darryl Duffy	Krzysztof Warzycha 9
Substitutions
Paolo Vanoli for Zurab Khizanishvili (66)	Joel Epalle for Lucian Sanmartean (45)
Egil Ostenstad for Chris Burke (70)	Goran Vlaovic for Miltiadis Sapanis (78)
Darryl Duffy for Maurice Ross (84)
Yellow Cards
Fernando Ricksen (84)	Lucian Sanmartean (44)
	Markus Munch (74)
· Club Rosters: Rangers | Panathinaikos

Updated: December 9, 2003, 5:23 PM ET

The home side needed just a draw to confirm a place in the UEFA Cup, with both sides having long been exposed as also-rans in the Champions League equation.

Michael Mols headed Rangers in front but Raimondas Zutautas soon cancelled out that first half advantage.

The introduction of the quicksilver Joel Epalle at the break proved to be the Greeks' masterstroke and, following a 30-yard shot from Angelos Basinas, the substitute set up Michalis Konstantinou for the killer goal.

The home side were left wondering what might have been had Ronald de Boer, Craig Moore, Mikel Arteta, Christian Nerlinger and Steven Thompson not been injured but these players will now have nothing but domestic football to look forward to once they regain fitness.

Rangers' preparations for the game had been hampered by fresh setbacks following confirmation that striker Shota Arveladze was unfit to take part and news from Brazil that Emerson's father had died, so the midfielder was given compassionate leave.

Initially, the Greeks were content to defend in numbers and it was only 20--year-old winger Chris Burke, making his first Champions League start, who appeared to be in a hurry to make things happen down the right flank.

But it was from the other side of the pitch that the opening goal suddenly materialised in the 28th minute, with Mols heading home a Michael Ball delivery having first lost his marker during a throw-in move.

The Dutchman had featured heavily in the pre-match build-up, having given an interview in which he had insisted he was tired, jaded and on the verge of quitting the game.

His leap and header, which goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis was only able to help into the top corner, certainly belied that and the crowd came to life to sing his name.

But that joy lasted only five minutes when the home side were just as culpable in defence as their opponents had been, allowing the roving Markus Munch to make ground down the left and cut the ball back for Zutautas to lash a low drive from outside the box past Stefan Klos, who had been a virtual spectator until that moment.

Rangers were back to square one and an uncomfortable final 45 minutes to their first Champions League campaign for three years looked in prospect.

In the end it was to prove worse than that for the home side, whose fate was sealed as soon as Epalle replaced Lucian Sanmartean, who had been booked for a foul on Fernando Ricksen a minute before half-time.

The newcomer made an instant impact down the right when Rene Henriksen sent him away and when his pacy ball across the box was only half cleared it needed a block on the line, seemingly by Klos, to deny Miltiadis Sapanis, who had seized on the loose ball in the box.

Epalle's pace was a real threat and a burst down the middle just before the hour mark saw Konstantinou set up for a drive some 25 yards in front of goal.

The striker had spent most of the game falling over trying to win free- kicks but Klos was beaten by the shot and was relieved to see the ball bounce away to safety off his left-hand post.

But the reprieve was short-lived as balding midfielder Basinas hit the shot of his life in the 62nd minute to beat Klos from 30 yards out.

The Greeks had dominated since the arrival of Epalle, an Olympic gold medallist with Cameroon, and in the 66th minute home manager Alex McLeish opted to change one defensive player for another, with Paolo Vanoli replacing Zura Khizanishvili, who appeared to have taken a knock.

Egil Ostenstad was sent on in place of Burke four minutes later but more in hope than anything as the veteran's two goals since leaving Blackburn had come against Forfar and St Johnstone.

He was to make no headway at all in a half where the home side failed to create a single decent chance.

The Greeks were content to use up as much time as possible and Munch was booked for delaying a 74th-minute free-kick.

In the 80th minute Epalle again made the difference by sending Konstantinou through and the striker had little difficulty firing past the exposed Klos to wrap up the game and kill off yet another Rangers European season before Christmas.