The Rangers team of the 22/23 season will officially go down as the worst performing team in Champions League group stage history after a tepid defeat to Ajax.
The Dutch Champions were heading to Ibrox to face an injury-ravaged Rangers with their talented side and if there was any outside hope of a result, it quickly vanished.
Ajax took the lead within four minutes with Steven Berghuis taking advantage of some desperate Gers defending to somewhat unorthodoxly finish off a slick Dutch move.
A hesitant Rangers defence then conceded again just before the half-hour mark with Leon King deflecting a Mohammed Kudus effort into his own net.
The gap between the sides was particularly evident in the first half where, really, it could’ve been four or five before the whistle was blown.
Mohammed Kudus did have a second in the back of the net ten minutes after the restart but the goal was ruled offside and Rangers went on to improve in the second half.
Scott Arfield saw a stunning volley tipped on to the bar, whilst Alfredo Morelos somehow missed an open goal after pressuring the Ajax keeper into a mistake.
James Tavernier would haul Rangers back into the game from spot after a sprinting Rabbi Matondo was cut down in the box, but any Ajax fears of a late equaliser were quelled when Francisco Conceicao completed the scoring.
Rangers miss out on £15m in bonuses as Champions League failure hits hard
The match ended 3-1 and with that Rangers became the worst ever performers in a Champions League campaign, the club’s 0 points and -20 goal difference setting an unwanted record.
This beats the -19 of Dinamo Zagreb in the 11/12 season and the -19 endured by Czech club Viktoria Plzen this season.
Rangers have gone from European finalists to a European laughing stock in a matter of months.
After the game, Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst was quick to refute claims regarding the financial benefits of the Champions League, claiming the £40m figure banded about by the tabloids is fundamentally untrue.
But what is true is that by putting in such an abject performance at this level, Rangers have missed out on a share of a reported £15m loot that comes with performance and result based bonuses.
UEFA award £2.5m for every Champions League victory, whilst a draw sees teams rake in £800k.
That means there is an extra £15m up for grabs in every group stages and Rangers haven’t managed to get even a small slice of the loot.
Meanwhile, the fans of one Celtic legend’s former Euro club have come together to celebrate the Rangers Ultras’ latest anniversary.
