September 30, (THEWILL) – Ten-man Rangers were defeated 1-0 by Sparta Prague at the Generali Arena for their second consecutive loss in this season’s UEFA Europa League.
Last season, Steven Gerrard’s charges went undefeated on the road in this league, but they were undone in the Czech capital on Thursday after David Hancko gave Sparta a first-half lead, which they held on to until the end.
Sparta were quick off the mark and within the first 25 minutes, Jakub Pesek and Martin Minchev had forced Rangers keeper, Allan McGregor, into a couple of superb saves.
Soon after, Hancko scored for Sparta with a flicked header that went in off the far post, despite McGregor’s best efforts to claw the ball away.
Sparta could have been two goals to the good when Adam Hlozek broke free and teed up Pesek for what appeared to be a straightforward finish 22 seconds into the second half, but the winger blasted the ball against the crossbar with the goal gaping.
Sparta were denied again by McGregor when he used his feet to keep Lukas Haraslin out of a one-on-one situation less than a minute later after Fashion Sakala’s close-range finish was ruled out for offside.
Rangers were still in with a chance of grabbing a point, but Kamara was sent off for a second yellow for a raised arm on Michal Sacek, and they were unable to create any more clear-cut chances.
The Scottish Premier League champions, who had Super Eagles players Leon Balogun turn in a proper shift for 90 minutes in defense and Joe Aribo substituted in the 77th minute, are now bottom of the table, six points behind leaders Lyon (who beat Brondby 3-0) and four points below Sparta in the race to qualify for the knockout stages.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
