VFB Stuttgart 1 Rangers 1:MADJID BOUGHERRA grabbed the headlines for all the right reasons last night when he marked his Champions League debut with a goal as Rangers claimed a point from their Group G opener in Stuttgart. The defender made amends for his red card at the weekend with a lovely strike late on to secure a draw for the Scottish champions at the Mercedes Benz Arena.
It had looked like being a difficult night for Rangers when Pavel Pogrebniak – who missed the 2008 Uefa Cup final against Rangers through suspension – opened the scoring after the Germans had dominated early on.
And it was the visitors who would have been the happier of the two sides as they returned to Glasgow with a precious point from their first match.
Rangers were dealt a blow before a ball had even been kicked with the news that skipper David Weir had failed to recover from an ankle knock he picked up in the goalless draw against Motherwell at the weekend.
That meant Lee McCulloch filled the void at centre-half, with Kevin Thomson drafted into the midfield, despite just 14 minutes of action since suffering a serious knee injury last November.
There was also another start for Jerome Rothen after the on-loan Paris St Germain winger made his debut on Saturday following his transfer deadline day switch to the Scottish champions.
Stuttgart received a boost when Alexander Hleb made the starting line-up after being rated doubtful with a muscle strain.
The absence of Weir proved to be a problem for Rangers right from the outset, with Stuttgart immediately piling the pressure on their visitors.
With less than a minute on the clock Cacau ran onto a cross from the right and drew a decent save from goalkeeper Allan McGregor, before Thomas Hitzlsperger hooked the rebound over the crossbar.
The home side were threatening again in the opening stages when Cacau released Pogrebniak into the box and he teed up the shot for Hleb but he was denied from close range by McGregor at the near post.
Hleb then turned provider with an inswinging corner into the box which broke to Cacau but his shot was diverted wide by the foot of McGregor. However, the Rangers goalkeeper was picking the ball out of the back of the net after 18 minutes when Cacau’s cut-back found Pogrebniak, who dispatched a powerful right foot shot past McGregor.
Rangers appeared more composed when they emerged for the second half and could have restored parity within a couple of minutes of the restart. Rothen picked out Sasa Papac in front of goal and the left-back did well to hold off Matthieu Delpierre only to see his header flash across the face of goal and wide of the upright.
The honours went to Bougherra instead when he snatched the leveller after 77 minutes. The defender worked a one-two with Rothen before driving past the out-stretched hands of Jens Lehmann.
Rangers could even have snatched a last-gasp victory when they hit the woodwork in the final minute of the game when a Davis shot struck the post.
VFB STUTTGART: Lehmann, Trasch, Tasci, Delpierre, Boka, Hilbert, Hitzlsperger, Khedira, Hleb (Gebhart 67), Cacau (Schieber 88), Pogrebniak. Subs not used: Ulreich, Boulahrouz, Marica, Celozzi, Kuzmanovic.
RANGERS: McGregor, Whittaker, McCulloch, Bougherra, Papac, Naismith, Davis, Thomson, Mendes, Rothen, Miller (Novo 90). Subs not used: Alexander, Boyd, Beasley, Smith, Fleck, Little. Booked: Papac.
Referee: Massimo Busacca (Switzerland).
