The moment that Jefte was sent off against Dynamo Kyiv, Rangers’ chances of qualifying for the Champions League all but disappeared.
It was a scandalous decision that, because it was a second yellow card, couldn’t go to a VAR referral with Allan McGregor apoplectic on punditry duty at Hampden Park.
A tough Europa League draw didn’t leave much hope of progress and yet Philippe Clement and then Barry Ferguson have managed to defy the odds.
Clement was sacked as Rangers manager because of domestic form and this is how anyone who sits in the Ibrox hotseat will be judged.
Without European football though, things would be a lot worse, both on and off the pitch as the financial implications of making it to the quarter-finals prove.
Rangers earn Europa League bonanza with seven-figure boost
Going on a decent Europa League run, similar to the one of this campaign sees in excess of £20m being brought into the Ibrox coffers.
In basic terms, approximately one quarter of the annual revenue.
Any business that loses this amount of money is going to struggle.
What rubs salt into the wounds, is that Celtic make almost double this for getting into the league phase of the Champions League, largely off the back of Rangers’ success in Europe since 2018.
For the quarter-finals alone, £2.1m is the money that UEFA pay for those who make it to the last eight with Rangers earning a much-needed cash boost.
And that’s on top of another sell-out crowd at Ibrox too.
On a tight budget, every little helps.
Butland the hero as Rangers progress
Over the two legs there were a few stand out performances, however, Jack Butland almost took on the form of his new goalkeeping coach Allan McGregor to help Rangers see off Fenerbahce.
In Turkey, he made one outrageous save with the score at 1-1 and then another in the 90th minute to protect the two-goal lead and seal some form of redemption.
At Ibrox, he stepped up to the plate again with two fine saves before really producing the goods in the penalty shoot out.
The first, stretching every inch of his 6ft 5inch frame was bettered by an almost carbon copy of McGregor’s against Red Star Belgrade in 2022 – is it a sign?
Football is a team game, but one man was responsible for Rangers banking an extra £2.1m and a place in the quarter-finals against Athletic Club.
