Rangers secured their place in the Europa League last 16 with a 1-0 victory over Braga at the Estadio Municipal, courtesy of a second-half strike from Ryan Kent. The win sealed a 4-2 aggregate triumph for Steven Gerrard's side, who had taken a 3-2 lead in the first leg at Ibrox.
Kent, who has faced criticism since his £7 million move from Liverpool, scored the decisive goal 16 minutes into the second half, sparking celebrations among the 5,000 travelling Rangers fans. The former Liverpool winger had earlier missed a clear chance, while Ianis Hagi became the fourth Rangers player this season to miss a penalty.
Gerrard praised Kent's contribution, saying: 'There have been a lot of opinions on Ryan of late, but he delivered a big moment for us. I judge him on what he is doing for the team – in and out of possession. People don't give him credit for the running he does. Hopefully this will do his confidence the world of good.'
The Rangers manager made a surprise defensive change, dropping Nikola Katic and starting George Edmundson alongside Connor Goldson. The partnership impressed Gerrard, who described their performance as 'faultless'. He added: 'George was thrown in at the deep end, but there's one way to get European experience. He stepped up and delivered with the help of Connor, who played like a captain.'
Rangers have now missed six of their ten penalties this season, but Gerrard said he never doubted his team would progress. 'Moments like those can play on your mind, but the game panned out as we thought. We could have scored two more and had the tie done at half-time. I had confidence that moments would come.'
