Rangers Exit Conference League After Penalty Defeat to Jablonec

Rangers have been knocked out of the Conference League after losing 4-3 on penalties to Jablonec in the second leg of their play-off in the Czech Republic. The Scottish club arrived with a 1-0 advantage from the first leg at Ibrox but failed to protect it, ending their European campaign before the league phase.

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BBC Sport reported that Rangers moved ahead early in the shootout before Findlay Curtis and James Penrice missed their final two penalties. The elimination leaves the Glasgow club without European football beyond August for the first time since 2017, when Progres Niederkorn beat them 2-1 on aggregate in Europa League qualifying.

Manager Derek McInnes accepted full responsibility and described the performance as embarrassing. He said Rangers had prepared to an elite standard but failed to reproduce that level during the match, while acknowledging that a substantial turnover of players had left the squad looking inexperienced at times. McInnes added that Jablonec deserved to advance.

The match statistics underlined Rangers' lack of attacking output. According to BBC Sport, they had just over 46 percent possession across 120 minutes and managed only one shot on target. Rangers also won fewer than 70 percent of their 16 tackles and committed 17 fouls as their manager criticised the team's failure to win enough individual battles and second balls.

The result increases pressure on McInnes following a difficult start to his tenure. Rangers had already exited the Europa League against Jagiellonia Bialystok, then took only one point from their opening two Scottish Premiership matches after drawing at Dundee United and losing at home to Hibernian. They responded with a 5-1 League Cup victory over St Mirren and the first-leg win over Jablonec before Thursday's setback.

McInnes confirmed that Rangers had not received a bid for absent midfielder Nico Raskin and said the club was trying to make further signings. Former Rangers midfielder Andy Halliday told BBC Scotland that the team offered little over the full 120 minutes, while former striker Steven Thompson pointed to the single shot on target as evidence of their limited threat.