French goalkeeper Lionel Charbonnier was in outstanding form as Rangers clinched a place in the first round of the UEFA Cup last night in Greece, while fellow Scots, Kilmarnock's European adventure came to an abrupt conclusion when they lost 2-0 to Sigma Olomouc (4-0 on aggregate).
For Rangers, Charbonnier, a summer signing from Auxerre, made three breathtaking stops to silence the passionate home fans in a ground known at the Tomb.
Rangers, 2-0 ahead for the first leg put in a superb performance, to a man. Rangers coach Dick Advocaat must have been delighted with the discipline shown by his side in the searing 90 degree heat.
There were question marks over team morale when skipper Lorenzo Amoruso and Jorg Albertz were involved in an astonishing bust-up following the 3-1 victory against Kilmarnock on Saturday.
But all appears to have been forgotten with Amoruso swapping high-fives with his German team-mate just before kick-off.
Advocaat recalled Ian Ferguson to the midfield with striker Gabriel Amato on the bench.
Rod Wallace was forced to go it alone up front and Rangers were penned in their own half for long periods of the game. But the fact that they came away from the Greek port with a clean sheet will do wonders for their confidence.
But Charbonnier had to be on his toes and in the 13th minute made a brilliant save after Dimitrius Kapetanopoulos had cut through the middle.
Albertz then upset the crowd with a stiff challenge on Percy Olivares with the crowd baying for a penalty. German referee Markus Merk waved away the protests and a bottle was thrown on the pitch.
Olivares rattled in a 25-yard free kick in the 31st minute that had the crowd on their feet but Charbonnier punched it clean away.
Rangers were relying on counter-attacks and Giovanni van Bronckhorst was narrowly off target after Andrei Kanchelskis had delivered the cross.
Charbonnier then made another breathtaking stop in the 59th minute from close range as sub Paul Cominges got on the end of a cross from Olivares.
Rangers were riding their luck and Charbonnier was beaten for the first time in the game with seven minutes remaining but the effort by Pantelis Uafes from the edge of the area came back off the bar.
Rangers had to play out five minutes of stoppage time as the crowd grew increasingly quiet and they now go in to the next stage with the draw being made on Friday.
Paok Salonika: Mihopoulos, Bancovic, Olivares, Zafseiriou (Uafes 72), Kapetanopoulos, Srdatzeskos, Vrizas, Toursounidis, Nagre, Koulakiotis, Katisabis. Subs Not Used: Argyriou, Velis, Samaras, Marifaliev, Cominges, Mastos. Booked: Nagre. RANGERS: Charbonnier, Porrini, Amoruso (Petric 77), Numan, B. Ferguson, Kanchelskis (Gattuso 81), Van Bronckhorst, Albertz (Amato 61), I. Ferguson, Wallace, Moore. Subs Not Used: Niemi, Johansson, Vidmar, Miller. Booked: B. Ferguson, Gattuso. Agg (0-2) Att: 36,000
Referee: M Merk (Germany).
Kilmarnock were ruthlessly dispatched by a clinical Czech performance at Rugby Park.
The Ayrshire outfit never came close to overhauling the two-goal deficit from their first-leg travels and their hopes of a comeback were knocked stone dead inside the first 20 minutes.
Goals from Czech duo Marek Heinz after 13 minutes and Josef Mucha six minutes later killed the tie as a contest and a miserable night for Bobby Williamson's side was complete when Alex Burke was red-carded in the closing minutes.
