Sporting Lisbon 2 - 2 Rangers: Late Edu clincher gifts Walter Smith another shot at glory

WALTER Smith's European career as Rangers manager was extended for at least another two matches last night as his side secured an improbably dramatic victory over Sporting Lisbon.

The outgoing Ibrox coach's 63rd birthday was marked by progress to the last 16 of the Europa League when Maurice Edu scrambled home their second goal of the night in the second minute of stoppage time.

The occasion had looked set to be an anti-climactic one for Smith when Sporting recovered from the loss of a 20th-minute El Hadji Diouf goal, former Rangers player Pedro Mendes drawing them level before Yannick Djalo netted what seemed for all the world to be a winning goal seven minutes from the end of regulation time.

But the addition of four minutes of injury time saw Rangers throw everything into attack in a desperate bid to salvage the tie and it was rewarded by Edu's goal. It can be argued long and hard whether a lengthy European run will be of any benefit to Rangers in the closing months of the season, but nothing could dampen the celebrations of Smith and his players last night.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was a match of generally low quality as two sides struggling to repair battered confidence on the back of recent poor domestic form scrapped it out in a half-empty stadium. Both teams were guilty of shabby passing with precious little fluency in their work. For the 2,000 Rangers supporters who had travelled to the Portuguese capital, however, Diouf's goal provided them with considerable encouragement that this was a tie the Scottish champions were well capable of winning.

It was a breakthrough which could not have been anticipated on the basis of an uncertain start to the match by the visitors.

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Deployed in the 5-4-1 formation Smith concocted for European competition this season, captain David Weir was at the heart of the defence after recovering from the stomach bug which forced him to miss training the previous evening.

Smith's midfield quartet was something of a surprise, with Steven Whittaker joining Maurice Edu in the central positions, the duo flanked by Steven Davis and John Fleck.

The signs were initially far from promising, with lone striker Diouf appearing hopelessly isolated, but it suddenly came up trumps for Rangers when they put together their first cohesive move of note.

Richard Foster pushed up from his right-back berth to find Davis in space on the right as Sporting were caught on the back-foot by the rapid counter attack. Davis measured his cross perfectly to find the unmarked Diouf inside the penalty area. His downward header from ten yards was firmly directed, although Sporting goalkeeper Rui Patricio might feel he should have done better than let it slide beyond him and into the net.

Having cancelled out Sporting's late away goal at Ibrox the previous week, Rangers were now back in command of the tie and it would be a major source of frustration to Smith that his team could not carry that advantage into the half-time interval.The home side seemed to lack both ideas and conviction as they attempted to produce a response to Diouf's strike, although Kyle Bartley did have to make a well-timed block to deny Matias Fernandez a clear shooting opportunity on the edge of the penalty area. Mendes, in a prelude to what was to come three minutes before the break, drove one long-range shot wide of the target as he looked to bring some spark to Sporting's work. He then showed great imagination with a clipped pass over the top of the Rangers defence which found Helder Postiga inside the penalty area, but the former Tottenham striker's control let him down as he blazed his shot off target.

Apart from turning a Yannick Djalo shot wide in the opening moments, Allan McGregor had been largely untroubled but the goalkeeper had no answer when Mendes levelled the tie with a stunning goal. It was also a highly preventable one.

Rangers were guilty of weak defending, Weir mistiming an attempted clearance which he seemed to expect Bartley to deal with first. The ball fell to Postiga on the edge of the box and he rolled a pass to Mendes who curled a magnificent right-foot shot beyond McGregor's grasping left hand into the corner of the net.

As the teams left the field at half-time, fourth official Antonio Damato sprinted onto the field to split up an altercation between Diouf and Sporting's Argentine defender Marco Torsiglieri with whom he had been engaged in a running battle.

The equaliser clearly energised Sporting, who began the second half with far greater pace and purpose than Rangers.

McGregor had to be alert and agile to prevent Fernandez putting the home side ahead, throwing himself high to his left to keep out the Chilean midfielder's well-struck long-range free-kick.

Joao Pereira, who had been pushed forward from right-back to an attacking-midfield role by Sporting coach Paulo Sergio, then missed a glaring chance to score when, having escaped the offside trap, he headed a Djalo cross over from four yards out.

Rangers' best chance of regaining the lead fell to Davis, who headed a Diouf cross straight at Patricio from close range, but it was Sporting who looked the likelier winners. Smith sent on Kyle Lafferty, Vladimir Weiss and David Healy in the closing stages to try and give his side a greater attacking threat but the plan came unstuck with Djalo's 83rd-minute goal. Pereira's cross from the right caught the Rangers defence out, with Djalo easily out-jumping Foster at the far post to direct a firm header beyond McGregor from close range.Just when all seemed lost, however, Foster and Healy combined down the right with the latter driving in a low cross which Edu bundled home from close range to spark wild scenes of celebration.

Sporting Lisbon: Patricio, Pereira, Polga, Torsiglieri, Evaldo; Mendes (Saleiro 81); Abel, Fernandez (Coelho 90), Zapater, Djalo; Postiga (Santos 87). Subs not used: Tiago, Maniche, Salomao, Cristiano.

Rangers: McGregor, Foster, Bougherra, Weir (Lafferty 71), Bartley, Papac; Whittaker, Davis, Edu, Fleck (Weiss 71); Diouf (Healy 82). Subs not used: Alexander, Wylde, Hutton, Cole.