“Make Us Dream” highlighted the fan banner – well, fantasy is on.
Of course, after a year in which the Rangers went from funny to sublime, Gio van Bronckhorst’s team chose to mislead their fans through the full range of emotions.
Being in 70 seconds, very happy at the break, worried that chance after chance was running out during the increasingly nervous second half before being left dizzy, as a momentary pass brought an extra 30 minutes, only Braga was happy to see.
In the end, it was more of a relief than a joy, as Kemar Ruf fired the precious winner who brought out the Scottish champions in the last four in the Europa League.
But once the heartbeat calms down, Ibrox faithful will be able to look back and enjoy a night that ensures that the season that threatens to fall apart may have a few more shivers and spills.
Ibrox, darling! It’s just different! ” Janis Hagi grinned the last time Braga went into Govan’s cacophonous cauldron.
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They acted differently, but the end result will be painfully familiar to Carlos Carvalhal’s team.
Last time, the Romanian ace of Rangers brought his country back into the draw.
This time it was a collective effort for the Light Blues to make their way to the first European final in 14 years.
James Tavernier shot a precious double to move to third place after Alfredo Morelos and Ali McCoist in the club’s list of European realisers.
Rufus refused to allow repeated disappointments at the door to repel him, as he showed up just when his team needed him to grab the winner in overtime and silence all those who said he could not fill Morelos’ boots. .
Joe Aribo, who has sometimes risen to his feet since returning from the African Cup of Nations, has dug deep into his energy reserves to show a display that reminds you why he was considered the candidate of the year before Christmas.
It might have been a harder night if the Carvalhal team had XI in the park, but then it was no surprise to see Vitor Tormena and Yuri Medeiros lose their heads amid the madness that only Ibrox can create on these special European nights. .
Joe Aribo from Rangers in Action (Image: Reuters)
Ibrox’s loyalists also had to see what Aaron Ramsey could do when the euro was finally pushed.
Juve’s ace on loan was signed just for these important occasions, when his high quality and many years of experience on the biggest stages could give Jersey an advantage.
But a total of four minutes of Europa League action was not the contribution the rain-soaked players had in mind as they battled the final day’s downpour to meet in Glasgow in January.
Fitness problems that prevented his payers in Turin from reaping the full value of those eye-catching £ 120,000 weekly wages unfortunately overshadowed him during the flight from Italy.
He even admitted in an interview before the match for BT Sport that he is still not 100 percent.
But calmness, composure, small touches under pressure remain sharp as always.
It was these qualities that ensured that Rangers could keep their feet on Braga’s neck in the first half, in which they barely let their Portuguese rivals catch their breath.
Borna Barisic also returned for his biggest start in two months.
It was an embarrassing season for the Croat, who fell by grace as quickly as his team’s dramatic collapse in the league.
But accused of covering the flank, which was such a problem last week in Portugal, Barisic was not only strong but forced Braga to return.
You could see in seconds that the balance of power on the left side of the Rangers turned in their favor straight from the opening shot and Barisic’s ball put the goalkeeper inside in just a minute.
Carlos Carvalhal had something to say in preparation for this one. Honestly to the former Sheffield United and Swansea boss, he was a journalist’s dream, accepting any invitation to express his opinion.
James Tavernier of Rangers Celebrates 2-0 (Image: SNS Group)
But here he was stunned in silence.
VAR – so often a friend of the Rangers this season – prevented it from being an even more disastrous start, as the shot pulled Barisic into handball after he made another dream delivery for Rufus to score five minutes.
The striker then hit the crossbar from close range, but there was no rest, no respite during the first half, in which Braga was left to breathe.
But just as visitors were hoping to return to their locker room shelter without further damage, Tormen’s insane decision to pull Ruuf in as the attacker rushed into the penalty area saw Ibrox explode into another insane mass of limbs and applause.
As Tormena stepped into the tunnel after being kicked out, Tavernier scored the penalty that should have seen Van Bronckhorst’s men stand on one foot in the last four.
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A third would remove the tension that still filled the air, but it would not come.
The nerves turned out to be justified, as Carmo overtook Goldson to lead a level of 10 men in total and send the tie in overtime.
But the night of a roller coaster ride ended when Rufus grabbed the winner.
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