Scottish European Football Roundup: Hoops Win in Rotterdam as Rangers and Aberdeen Held at Home

This week saw Celtic travel to Rotterdam for a tough fixture away to Feyenoord, whilst Rangers and Aberdeen hosted Braga and FC Noah respectively.

With Aberdeen having a mere point and Rangers none, this was a massive opportunity to jumpstart the hearts of their dying European campaign’s.

Elsewhere Martin O’Neil looked to take his 100% domestic winning record into Europe after losing convincingly in Denmark a few weeks ago.

First European Away Win in Four Years for Celtic

Celtic produced one of their finest European away performances in recent years as they defeated Feyenoord 3-1 in Rotterdam, earning their first victory on Dutch soil since Martin O’Neill’s first spell in charge more than two decades ago.

However, the night did not start well for the Hoops. A single long ball from the hosts carved straight through the Celtic back line, allowing Sem Steijn to square for Ayase Ueda who slotted beyond Kasper Schmeichel for his 14th goal of the season.

As fireworks flew around the stadium, memories of prior away trips came rushing back to fans and, after a sluggish domestic display at St Mirren just days earlier, the early concession threatened to send Celtic down an all too familiar path.

Instead, O’Neill’s side responded superbly. Yang ghosted into the box unmarked and swept a first-time effort past Timon Wellenreuther to level the match, and Celtic completed the turnaround shortly after thanks to a gift from the Feyenoord goalkeeper.

Pressured by Daizen Maeda, Wellenreuther sliced an attempted clearance straight to Reo Hatate, who calmly rolled the ball into an empty net.

Stunned by the visitors’ aggression and composure, Feyenoord were pinned in as Celtic took charge of possession after the break. The hosts eventually grew into the half, piling players forward in search of an equaliser, but were repeatedly denied.

Callum McGregor cleared Tsuyoshi Watanabe’s effort off the line, Gaoussou Diarra saw a strike blocked, and a towering header rattled the crossbar as the Dutch champions pressed desperately.

Those missed opportunities proved costly. With fifteen minutes remaining, Benjamin Nygren punished Feyenoord’s wastefulness, crashing a fierce left-footed strike in off the underside of the bar to seal a famous Celtic win.

For O’Neill, in what could be his last European game in charge of the Hoops, it was a fitting and memorable way to sign off. And for Celtic, it marked a long-awaited European statement – and a much-needed three points at the halfway stage of the group.

Rangers let victory slip as Braga punish careless Gers

Rangers finally halted their European losing streak but were left frustrated as they allowed 10-man Braga to escape Ibrox with a 1-1 draw.

Danny Rohl’s side claimed their first point of the Europa League campaign, yet will feel it should have been all three.

Braga began the match with the confidence expected of a team sitting near the top of the group, and Jack Butland was called upon twice in the opening stages to keep Rangers level – first stretching low to deny Ricardo Horta, then standing tall as the striker burst through on goal.

For half an hour the hosts struggled to fashion anything of note, but gradually they worked their way into the contest. Danilo shot tamely at the goalkeeper after being slid in by Mohamed Diomande, before Djeidi Gassama felt contact in the box but saw his appeals waved away.

Rangers’ breakthrough arrived in stoppage time at the end of the first half. VAR intervened when Fran Navarro handled inside the area, and James Tavernier calmly dispatched the resulting penalty to equal Ally McCoist’s tally of 21 European goals.

Things improved further for the hosts when Braga midfielder Rodrigo Zalazar was sent off for a reckless confrontation with Nicolas Raskin shortly after the restart.

With a one-goal lead and a man advantage, Danny Rohl’s men appeared well placed to claim the victory they desperately needed. But a familiar frailty resurfaced.

Midway through the second half, centre-back Nasser Djiga misjudged a lofted ball into the box and flicked a panicked header straight into the path of Gabri Martinez, who gratefully tapped home the equaliser.

Rangers pushed late on but created nothing of note, and their frustration deepened when Diomande was dismissed for a second yellow card in injury time.

Though the point ends a damaging seven-match European losing run, it leaves Rangers with a mountain to climb in a group where away trips to Ferencváros and Porto still await.

Aberdeen held at Pittodrie as European hopes fade

Aberdeen’s chances of reaching the Conference League knockout stages took another major blow as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Armenian champions FC Noah at Pittodrie.

With just two points from four matches and daunting fixtures against Strasbourg and Sparta Prague still to come, Jimmy Thelin’s side now look all but out of the running.

Prior to the game Thelin had labelled the clash a must-win, and for 45 minutes it appeared his players had taken that message on board.

In a scrappy opening half, the breakthrough arrived just before the interval when Topi Keskinen battled to keep a move alive and teed up Kevin Nisbet, who swivelled smartly before firing Aberdeen ahead.

But the lead evaporated almost immediately after the restart. Noah, who had offered little in the first 45, found renewed energy and levelled through Nardin Mulahusejnovic, the striker powering a superb header past Kelle Roos after a fine cross from the right.

The goal drained the atmosphere inside Pittodrie and allowed the visitors to gain a foothold, dominating long spells of possession, albeit without carving out many clear chances.

Aberdeen’s best opportunity to reclaim the lead came through substitute Nicolas Milanovic late on, but the Australian could only hit the side-netting when sent through one-on-one. The Dons pushed until the final whistle, yet a lack of cutting edge again proved costly.

With a goal difference of minus seven and three points now separating them from the play-off places, Aberdeen face an extremely steep uphill battle in their remaining fixtures.

For all their recent defensive steadiness, the inability to find a second goal continues to undermine their European campaign.

Featured Image Credit: Frfeyenoord12 via Wikimedia

Deaglán Murray

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2nd year journalism and sport student at the University of Stirling, with a particular interest in music and sports. Sport editor for Brig Newspaper.

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