| Event | 2017–18 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round – Second leg | ||||||
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| Progrès Niederkorn win 2–1 on aggregate | |||||||
| Date | 4 July 2017 (2017-07-04) | ||||||
| Venue | Stade Josy Barthel,Luxembourg City | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Olivier Thill | ||||||
| Referee | Vilhjálmur Þórarinsson (Iceland) | ||||||
| Attendance | 5,534 | ||||||
Progrès Niederkorn vs Rangers was afootball match played on 4 July 2017 at theStade Josy Barthel. The match was aUEFA Europa League first qualifying round tie betweenLuxembourgish minnowsProgrès Niederkorn, who finished fourth in the2016–17 National Division, andScottish sideRangers, who finished third in the2016–17 Scottish Premiership.[1]
At the time, theLuxembourg National Division was among the lowest ranked football leagues in terms of theirUEFA coefficient.[2] In addition, Progrès had never before won a game in European competition and had scored only once in 13 European games.[3] In contrast, Rangers have a proud history of success in Europe, they won the1971–72 European Cup Winners' Cup and finished runners up in the 1961 and 1967 finals of the same competition, they also finished as runners-up in the2007–08 UEFA Cup.[4][5]
The result, 2–0 to Progrès, is considered by some media outlets as "humiliating" for Rangers and was described as "the worst result in the club's history". It sent Rangers out of European competition for another year, having not qualified in the previous six years since the club'sadministration in 2012.[6][7]
Led by Luxembourgish-ItalianmanagerPaolo Amodio, Niederkorn finished fourth in the2016–17 Luxembourg National Division and thus qualified for the first qualifying round of theUEFA Europa League. In 2006, Niederkorn were promoted from theDivision of Honour to the Luxembourgish top flight, the club initially struggled and had to face therelegation playoffs in the2012–13 season. However, they saw success in the subsequent years. They qualified for the2015–16 Europa League for the first time since1982 by finishing fourth but succumbed to a 3–0 defeat on aggregate toShamrock Rovers in the first qualifying round.[8] Niederkorn repeated that league success of the previous year in 2016–17 by finishing fourth which again placed them in the first qualifying round of the Europa League, this time they were drawn against Rangers.[citation needed]
On 13 March 2017, Rangers assigned Portuguese nationalPedro Caixinha to the role of manager after the club finished third in the2016–17 Scottish Premiership, which qualified them for the Europa League. The 2016–17 season was Rangers' first season back in theScottish Premier League after being sent to the lowest tier of theScottish football league system, theThird Division (now known asLeague Two), for the 2012–13 season as they entered into administration.[9] The club had not qualified for European competition in six years.[10]
On 29 June 2017, Rangers won the first leg of their tie against Progrès Niederkorn 1–0 atIbrox and went into the game with high hopes.[11]
"I'm just disappointed. I assume all the responsibility. We could not do what we were here to do – win the game. What happened to us today is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. That's part of football of course."[12]
Rangers' starting eleven contained Caixinha's new signingsDaniel Candeias,Alfredo Morelos andFábio Cardoso, andRyan Jack also received his debut.
The visitors saw most of the ball in the early stages of the game but could not find a way past the Niederkorn defence. Rangers strikerKenny Miller, who scored the goal in the reverse leg, saw his shot blocked, and that was the closest to a goal for either side in the first half and they went in for the interval with the score remaining level on the night but the Scots ahead on aggregate.
The deadlock was almost broken by Rangers through aNiko Kranjčar header which came back off the crossbar, but it was Progrès that initiated the scoring. In the 66th minute, Rangers conceded a free kick in a threatening position. It proved decisive asEmmanuel Françoise headed in the opener and scored the club's first European goal since a 1–1 draw againstGlentoran in 1981.
Progrès then doubled their lead on the night and took the lead on aggregate in the 75th minute from another free kick:Sébastien Thill curled in a free kick which evaded everyone and crept in at the far post.
Rangers failed to score a vitalaway goal which would send them through, despite hitting the bar twice, and Progrès secured their first win in European competition in their 100-year history.
        Progrès Niederkorn |      Rangers |
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"For the Rangers fans it's humiliating. For the players, humbling, and when the dust settles on what some are calling the worst result in the club's history there will be huge questions to answer for the Rangers board and manager Pedro Caixinha."[13]
After the defeat, Scottish media outlets regarded the match as one of the most embarrassing defeats in the history of Rangers, the history of Scottish football, and one of the greatest shocks in European football. TheBBC described the match as "humiliating" for Rangers, and theDaily Record dubbed it "a horror show", before adding "a utterly horrific result".[14]
After that disappointing start to the season, Rangers' form did not improve. Notable results include a 2–0 defeat to Celtic at home in the league[15] and defeat toMotherwell in theScottish League Cup semi-final by the same scoreline.[16] On 26 October, a day after a 95th-minute equaliser at Ibrox by last-placedKilmarnock saw Rangers draw 1–1, Caixinha was sacked andGraeme Murty took over ascaretaker manager for the second time. The Portuguese manager's reign was the shortest ever in the club's history, only serving 229 days in charge. It was described as "a desperate mess from start to finish".[17]
In thesecond qualifying round, Progrès Niederkorn played Cypriot sideAEL Limassol and were eliminated 3–1 on aggregate, losing both legs.[18] AEL Limassol only survived to the next round, where they were defeated byAustria Wien.
Both clubs qualified for the Europa League again thefollowing season, after Progrès Niederkorn improved their domestic league position from 4th to 2nd in the2017–18 Luxembourg National Division and Rangers again finished 3rd in the2017–18 Scottish Premiership. They each defeated two opponents to reach thethird qualifying round, with the advance draw for the subsequent Play-off round pairing them up again should both make it through;[19] However, while Rangers did advance, Progrès were narrowly defeated by Russian clubFC Ufa;[20] the Luxembourgers had already achieved their best-ever outcome in European competitions by winning the two prior rounds. Rangers went on to defeat FC Ufa in the Play-off round and thus qualified for the group stages of the Europa League.
Both clubs qualified for the2019–20 UEFA Europa League and were drawn to face each other again, this time in thesecond qualifying round, both having navigated thefirst round.[21] Rangers won the tie and advanced with a 2–0 victory in Scotland and a 0–0 draw in Luxembourg.[22]
