Barry Ferguson laps up Turkish delight as interim Rangers boss trumps master Mourinho with bold tactical tweak

Barry Ferguson has refused to admit he “outfoxed” the ‘Special One’ as Rangers produced a masterclass in ruthless finishing in Istanbul.

The Ibrox side will take a two-goal cushion into next week’s return leg of their Europa League last-16 tie after running out 3-1 winners over Fenerbahce in the Turkish capital, with Cyriel Dessers and a Vaclav Cerny brace doing the damage.

Alexander Djiku has briefly hauled the home side back on level terms, but the margin of victory could have been greater for the Light Blues had Dessers’ not strayed into an offside position on two separate occasions in the second half.

Interim boss Ferguson made the bold decision to deviate from a back four to a 3-4-2-1 formation and the tactical change paid off.

Reacting to the impressive result on TNT Sports, a delighted Ferguson admitted: “The commitment, the desire, at times some the football we played was very good. We've got to remember, it's only half-time in the tie because Fenerbahce have got one of the best managers that's ever been.

“I'm proud of the boys because they've come through a lot this season. They deserve a lot of credit. We need to be ready for next Thursday and, I tell you something, I'll have them ready.

“I wouldn't say I outfoxed (Mourinho). We went a way that I thought would get us a result and we only spent an hour on it. They took the information on and delivered a performance to be proud of.

“You can feel sorry for yourselves when you get a couple of goals disallowed but we went on and got the third goal. Ibrox has been a bit of a problem, but we'll enjoy tonight and then try to fix that problem.”

Read more: Rangers player ratings vs Fenerbahce: Four earn 8s in stunning first-leg win as Mourinho's magic fails to catch fire