BARRY FERGUSON escaped extending the worst home run in the history of the Ibrox club when they dodged a bullet in Govan last night.
Athletic Bilbao squandered a penalty-kick against 10-man opponents as they tamely settled for a scoreless stalemate in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final with the return due in Spain next week.
Caretaker boss Ferguson realised his club had been on the receiving end in the five previous encounters on their own pitch when Queen’s Park, St Mirren, Motherwell, Fenerbahce and Hibs all came, saw and conquered.
OOPS…Bilbao striker Maroan Sannadi blows an ideal opportunity from four yards as the Ibrox club escape again.
The Basque side blew the opportunity to stretch the sequence of misery after the hosts had been reduced to 10 men in 12 minutes after Robin Propper had been red-carded after wiping out Inaki Williams as his opponent prepared to race clear on a through pass.
The Romanian referee originally booked the Dutchman, but VAR intervened to highlight the fact the Bilbao striker would have had a clear goalscoring opportunity if he hadn’t been crudely scythed to the ground just outside the box.
Moments later, Ferguson was booked for one protest too many from the touchline.
Bilbao were strangely subdued for the remainder of the contest and looked as though they would settle for a draw and get the job finished at their place on Thursday.
SPANISH SIGHS…Alex Berenguer hooks the ball into the net, but is ruled just offside.
Ferguson axed error-prone keeper Jack Butland and brought in Liam Kelly. The stand-in shotstopper was hailed as the team’s hero when he saved a 78th-minute penalty-kick.
In a flashpoint incident, Bilbao thought they had scored after Alex Berenguer thumped the ball home from close range, but their celebrations were cut shot when a VAR check showed he had drifted just offside.
However, the technicians also proved blundering Dujon Sterling had handled the ball in the build-up and a spot-kick was awarded instead.
The finishing of the visitors had been dismal all evening and it was no surprise when Berenguer blasted an effort straight at Kelly who had taken off for his right, but managed to thrust out a left foot.
The ball cannoned off the netminder’s boot and ricocheted to safety.
SPOT OF BOTHER…Alex Berenguer fluffs his penalty-kick.
The burbling Ally McCoist informed TNT viewers there had been “nothing lucky” about Kelly’s save.
Who knew Super Ally was such an aficionado of goalkeeping arts as well as being an acknowledged expert on everything else in the game?
His old club got out of jail – whether he recognised that fact or not.
Bilbao boss Ernesto Valverde will have been mystified at the bewildering lack of a killer touch from his forwards.
Lumbering striker Maroan Sannadi, who had scored only one goal in his previous eight first-team games, gave onlookers the impression he had been introduced to a football an hour or so before kick-off.
He had a shocking miss from four yards when he wildly belted the ball past the post in the 58th minutes and, mercifully, he was withdrawn shortly afterwards.
Wee Barry will now be working on his masterplan to eliminate the Spaniards next week.
