Rangers’ hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were ruined after two quick goals from Dynamo Kyiv punished them at Hampden Park.
After a 1-1 draw in the first leg, Jefté’s controversial red card in the second half gave the visitors an edge and second-half strikes from Oleksandr Pikhalyonok and Nazar Voloshyn clinched a 2-0 victory, to progress 3-1 on aggregate.
Ross McCausland tested Kyiv goalkeeper Georgiy Bushchan in a cagey first half but pushed the ball to safety, while Jefté earned a booking for a trip. The Brazilian was then shown a a harsh second yellow card for an aerial challenge on Oleksandr Karavaiev after 51 minutes.
The hosts, playing at Hampden while renovations are carried out at Ibrox, responded strongly to the red card and the striker Cyriel Dessers went close with his attempt charged down by a defender.
Dynamo Kyiv slowly started to take control, however, and pounced for the breakthrough in the 82nd minute with Pikhalyonok firing past Jack Butland from the edge of the penalty area. Rangers had little time to react before Voloshyn fired home two minutes later to settle the tie.
Philippe Clement’s fury at Jéfte’s red card was evident following the final whistle as the Rangers head coach walked on to the pitch to question the referee, Marco Guida. Kyiv will take on Red Bull Salzburg in the final playoff round of the League Path, while Rangers drop down into the Europa League playoffs.
Salzburg, who were runners-up to Sturm Graz in the Austrian league last term, looked in total control of their tie against FC Twente as they scored twice early in Enschede to take a 4-1 aggregate lead. The hosts pulled it back to 3-3 on the night, and 5-4 down overall, but Salzburg held on to advance.
José Mourinho’s hopes of leading Fenerbahce to the Champions League’s new, expanded league phase are over after Jonathan David’s extra-time penalty earned Lille a 3-2 aggregate victory against the Turkish giants.
After losing the first leg 2-1 in France, Mourinho backed Fenerbahce fans to be “our driving force” in the return leg in Istanbul – and the hosts started brightly, with Edin Dzeko heading wide in the first minute. Lille’s goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier was twice called into action, before David almost extended the visitors’ lead on a counterattack.
In the second half, Mourinho brought on Bright Osayi-Samuel, and the substitute struck the post late on with Lille clinging to their lead. In stoppage time, Fenerbahce kept the tie alive and forced extra time when a long throw bounced in off the defender Bafodé Diakité for an own goal.
Fenerbahce went into extra time with momentum, which only increased when Lille’s debutant Aïssa Mandi was sent off for a high boot. But with time running down, Lille were awarded a penalty for handball, which was converted by David to seal progress.
The Ligue 1 side will face Slavia Prague, who defeated Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise 4-1 on aggregate, in the playoff round, while Fenerbahce drop into the Europa League.
In the Champions Path – which offers five places in the new 36-team league phase as opposed to the two available through the League Path – Malmö beat Greek champions PAOK on penalties to set up a playoff with Sparta Prague, who overcame Romania’s FCSB 4-3 on aggregate.
Qarabag produced an extraordinary four-goal surge in extra time to eliminate Ludogorets in Bulgaria, turning a 3-2 lead (and 4-4 aggregate score) into a 7-2 rout and 8-4 overall win. They will face Dinamo Zagreb next, while Bodø/Glimt will play automatic qualifiers Red Star Belgrade after routing Poland’s Jagellonia Bialystok 5-1 on aggregate.
Young Boys and Galatasaray, the other two sides who start their qualifying campaigns in the final playoff round, will face off for a place in the league phase. In the remaining game, Midtjylland meet Slovan Bratislava after they eliminated Hungary’s Ferencvaros and Cypriot side Apoel respectively.
