Viktoria Plzen 2-1 Rangers: Player ratings + talking points as Martin's men march on in UCL, improvement needed

Ragged Rangers survived a second leg onslaught in the Czech Republic to join Glasgow rivals Celtic in the Champions League play-off round at the expense of Viktoria Plzen.

Russell Martin’s side are now just one tie away from reaching the competition’s lucrative League Phase, despite falling to a 2-1 defeat against their dominant hosts in Plzen.

However, the damage had already been done during last week’s first leg at Ibrox, with the Light Blues running out 3-0 winners to progress 4-2 on aggregate.

However, Martin knows his players will have to defend a lot better and move up a few gears against Belgian side Club Brugge, who knocked out RB Salzburg, to earn that £40 million golden ticket after a far from polished display in their latest continental clash.

Despite boasting a three-goal cushion, the visitors rode their luck at times here and this was far from the safe passage that many expected. Lyall Cameron's second-half equaliser ultimately proved decisive against their wasteful opponents, who spurned a number of glorious chances on the night.

There was little in the way of quality from both sides during the opening 30 minutes, with Plzen first to threaten when Lukas Cerv forced Jack Butland into a smart save, before Prince Adu out-muscled James Tavernier but fired wide of the target.

Rangers failed to heed those early warnings and they fell behind after 41 minutes when slack play from Jefte allowed Amar Memic time to cross for Rafiu Durosinmi to slam home the opener.

Plzen - who appeared a level below Rangers opponents in the previous round, Panathinaikos - continued to probe after the break as they looked to make further inroads on Rangers aggregate lead.

But the Govan outfit plunged a dagger into Plzen hearts on the hour mark when centre-back John Souttar picked out Mohamed Diomande, who cut the ball back for substitute Danilo. The Brazilian’s scuffed effort fell kindly for Cameron to notch his first goal for his new club, and a timely equaliser.

To their credit, Plzen rallied in the closing stages with Butland producing another top save to deny Adu and then again Milan Havel's close-range header.

However, the Gers No.1 was unable to keep out the unmarked Svetozar Markovic’s header with seven minutes remaining for what turned out to be a late consolation.

This was a case of job done for Rangers, but it proved far less comfortable than anticipated. Here, GlasgowWorld breaks down three main talking points from the 90 minutes and how the Rangers players fared:

Jefte’s head seems elsewhere

21-year-old left-back Jefte has struggled to convince the Rangers support that he is the answer to their left-back troubles and he looked like his head was elsewhere amidst talk of a potential transfer exit.

News broke less than 24 hours ago that Brazilian side Palmeiras have opened talks with the the Gers over a possible deal this summer. And it was clear on this evidence that the player’s focus appeared to be on other pressing matters. He was skinned far too easily by Memic for Plzen’s opening goal and offered very little going forward.

Plzen offered hope of miracle comeback

Viktoria Plzen boss Miroslav Koubek stated pre-match his side needed a miracle to overturn their heavy first-leg defeat, but they were handed encouragement by Martin’s men.

The travelling fans demanded a positive response after Saturday’s woeful Premiership draw with Dundee, but this 90 minutes will have left them with more concerns than answers.

They were slack in possession. Only a combination of some strong goalkeeping from Jack Butland and a lack of quality in the Plzen ranks to capitalise on numerous opportunities spared Rangers blushes.

Club Brugge stand in wait as £3.7m bonus banked

Rangers reward for making it to the play-off round is a welcome £3.7 million bonus - a tidy sum that will likely be added to the club’s new American owners transfer kitty.

A tricky test lies in wait against Club Brugge - who held Celtic to a 1-1 draw in the league phase last season before advancing to the last-16 - as Rangers aim to secure an additional £16m cash injection with every victory they manage to achieve in the Champions League worth a further £1.8m.

Factor in ticket sales, television rights and hospitality revenue, Rangers earning could soar drastically, but those eye-popping figures would drop if they fall short and slip into the Europa League.

Rangers player ratings

GK - Jack Butland (8/10)

RB - James Tavernier (5/10)

RCB - John Souttar (6/10)

LCB - Nasser Djiga (5/10)

LB - Jefte (4/10)

CM - Nicolas Raskin (6/10)

CM - Mohamed Diomande (5/10)

CM - Lyall Cameron (7/10)

LCF - Djeidi Gassama (6/10)

RCF - Oliver Antman (6/10)

CF - Cyriel Dessers (5/10)

Subs used: Danilo (6/10), Joe Rothwell (3/1), Kieran Dowell (4/10), Nedim Bajrami (N/A), Oscar Cortes (N/A).