Scottish Premiership

TWELVE years to make it back to the Champions League.Sixteen torrid minutes for it all to unravel.
Ajax were three up on Rangers by half-time
The Light Blues dream return turned into a nightmare
Rangers’ dream return to the Group Stages turned into a nightmare as Ajax wiped the floor with them.
Four days after their pummelling at Parkhead, Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s shell-shocked flops were simply annihilated in Amsterdam.
Three goals inside the opening 33 minutes did all the damage with gutless Gers torn apart time and time again.
Edson Álvarez headed the opener before Steven Berghuis – with the aid of a massive James Sands deflection – made it two. 
Mohammed Kudus added a quickfire third to pile on the agony.
Rangers had lost three goals in the space of 16 minutes and for the second successive game they found themselves three down at half-time.
With ten minutes left Steven Bergwijn accepted a gift from Gers sub Ryan Jack to make it four and complete Ajax’s rout.
Questions will now, understandably, be asked of the Rangers manager.
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This was the second time in four days his team folded like a cheap pack of cards.
And there is no doubt van Bronckhorst’s resolve is about to be severely tested.
After Aberdeen away comes Napoli and Dundee United at home.
Following that, it’s trips to Tynecastle and Anfield with Liverpool at Ibrox rounding off their next six fixtures.
It’s shaping up to be a make-or-break run for the Rangers boss.
Two weeks ago, just 80 miles south of the magnificent Johan Cruijff Arena, Rangers ended their agonising wait for a return to the Champions League.
On a night of nerve-shredding drama, Gers stunned PSV as the Ibrox side hit the Euro jackpot.
How things have taken a Cruyff turn for the worse for van Bronckhorst since then.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s resolve is about to be severely tested
The Dutchman didn’t see a penny of the £40million banked in the Philip Stadion as Gers, much to the dismal of their fans, failed to strengthen their squad before the close of the transfer window.
The anger that had been simmering since Thursday night exploded on Saturday as Rangers imploded at Celtic Park.
For the second time in seven months, van Bronckhorst’s team were dismantled at the home of their bitter rivals.
The courage shown in Eindhoven was nowhere to be seen. 
It was hopelessly lacking last night too.
In a repeat of the weekend, Gers found themselves three goals down at the break.
It could, and possibly should, have been much worse.
As sharp and as incisive as Ajax were, Gers had been a shambles. A gang.
Jurren Timber served notice of what was to come when he was given a free header inside the six yard box.
The opening goal – the first of three inside the opening 35 minutes – came from another corner.
Edson Alvarez opened the scoring for Ajax
Sands allowed Alvarez to run off him, the defender planting his header in the bottom corner.
McLaughlin made a smart save at his near post to deny Devyne Rensch before the Ajax star missed an absolute sitter.
Van Bronckhorst’s side just couldn’t get near the hosts – they couldn’t live with their speed of play.
Most of it was coming down Ajax’s right hand side and it was from there Kenneth Taylor slipped in Rensch.
But, with McLaughlin’s goal gaping, he somehow blasted wide.
Sands then got in a last-ditch block on Kudus before Gers hit self-destruct.
With 32 minutes gone, Kudus played Berghuis in.
His shot was deflected past McLaughlin by Sands – surely it had to go down as an own goal?
Two minutes later and Ajax had their third.
Former Gers star Calvin Bassey found Kudus who broke free from the shackles of James Tavernier far too easily.
Former Ibrox star Calvin Bassey played 90 minutes for the hosts
Take nothing away from his stunning finish, but the Ajax forward should never have been allowed to carry the ball as far as he did.
McLaughlin was then called upon to make two further saves as Ajax continued to pour forward.
They had been utterly relentless.
In an admission of just how badly it had gone for his team, van Bronckhorst made three changes at the break with Tavenier, Scott Wright and Malik Tillman failing to re-emerge.
Gers also went to five at the back with Jack, Leon King and Rabbi Matondo all coming on.
You could understand the call, he needed to plug the gaping holes in what was already an exercise in damage limitation.
Ajax continued to dominate possession in the second half. Rangers seemingly content to let them have the ball.
With 65 minutes gone the brilliant Kudus almost scored a wonder goal.

Dribbling past no fewer than FIVE Rangers players he suddenly found himself inside the box with only McLaughlin to beat.
John Lundstram, to his credit, got back to his feet just in time to help the Rangers keeper scramble the ball clear.
Rangers hadn’t been seen as an attacking force – Ajax keeper Remko Pasveer had been a virtual spectator.
With 20 minutes left he was picking the ball out of his net.
However, Borna Barisic’s fine finish wouldn’t stand as VAR flagged creator Ryan Kent for offside. 
If that didn’t sum up Rangers’ miserable night the next passage of play most certainly did.
Jack failed to find Connor Goldson with a pass back towards his own goal allowing Bergwijn to pounce.
The Ajax man rounded McLaughlin to roll home his side’s fourth.
The final whistle couldn’t come quickly enough for the Rangers players.

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ANGE POSTECOGLOU dared to dream.But for Celtic this was a Champions League dose of Reality.
Celtic were given a dose of reality by Spanish giants Real Madrid
Vinicius Junior, Luka Modric and Eden Hazard scored for the away side
The Parkhead boss tonight got the fearless performance he wanted from his players.
But Carlo Ancelotti’s Madrid showed why they’re reigning champions of this competition.
The La Liga giants lifted the trophy in Paris back in May and their devastating second-half performance suggested they’re in no mood to let it go.
Celtic, though, can hold their heads high.
On another night they could have been 3-0 up themselves as they gave this tie everything they had and then some.
But in the end it was goals from Vinicius Jr, Luka Modric and Eden Hazard that decided this Group F opener.
What a game it was. What an effort from Celtic.
Madrid’s megastars have been there, seen it and done it all before in the biggest and best stadiums in world football.
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Guys at their level don’t get easily spooked.
Yet even these Galacticos must have sensed there was something special in the air last night.
The atmosphere really was incredible.
Celtic were shooting towards the Lisbon Lions Stand in the first-half and there wasn’t a single supporter in the lower tier sitting down.
They’d paid a small fortune for their seats but everyone stood, virtually kicking every ball.
The fans were all hyped up and almost bursting with adrenaline coursing through their veins – just like the players on the park.
Postecoglou promised he’d stick to his principles and football philosophy, and didn’t he just. 
From kick-off Celtic went for it.
And incredibly it’s no exaggeration to say they could have gone 3-0 up before they’d even broken sweat.
Liel Abada scored twice against Rangers at the weekend and he’ll be kicking himself he didn’t have as many inside the first 13 minutes.
Ange Postecoglou had his side take the game to the European champions
He was unlucky with his first effort inside the first 20 SECONDS when Madrid’s Eder Militao made an incredible block to divert the Israeli’s shot off target.
It would be unfair to say he had to score.
But Abada really should have done better with his next chance.
Jota played an unbelievable ball through to the winger who darted in off the right touchline to put himself one-on-one with Thibaut Courtios.
The giant Madrid No1 stood tall and made himself as imposing as he possibly could. 
But even so, Abada made it easy for the big goalkeeper with a weak shot struck straight at him.
It was like he was thinking too much about the stage he was on and the team he was playing against in those vital seconds as he ran through. 
Madrid could have been rattled by those big moments but they kept passing and moving with the class they’re known for.
Celtic kept going, though. And kept creating opportunities.
Skipper Callum McGregor spoke before the draw was made about how he was desperate to face Madrid.
With 21 minutes on the clock he rattled a shot which was inches away from finding the back of the net.
Callum McGregor rattled the post in the first-half
Courtois could only stand and watched as the ball smacked his post.
You had got wonder there and then if Celtic would live to regret all these near misses. They really couldn’t have dreamt of having chances so good as they thought ahead to this fixture.
Madrid were also dealt a blow midway through the first-half when skipper Karim Benzema limped off with a thigh injury.  
But it would be stretching it to say Madrid were significantly weakened by his exit when his replacement stepped onto the pitch. Hazard is an understudy for no-one.
It was after his introduction that Madrid looking threatening in the first-half.
In 42 minutes the ex-Chelsea star played a terrific through ball for Vinicius Jr, who scarpered through with only Joe Hart to beat.
It felt like the moment all of Celtic’s hard work would be undone in one sickening moment before the break. 
Yet Hart steadied himself as the Brazil international failed to beat him.
It would have been a travesty had Madrid gone in 1-0 ahead at the break.
But everyone knew the la Liga giants were certain to raise their game in the second-half. 
Real Madrid took the lead just before the hour mark
They had too much quality and talent on the pitch to allow this game to pass them by.
Postecoglou tried to mix things up and took off Abada at the interval and replaced him with Daizen Maeda.
The Japanese winger was next to come close to scoring just seconds after the restart.
But soon it started to unravel for Celtic as they conceded two goals in the blink of an eye.
In 56 minutes Madrid scored on the break when Hazard combined with Federico Valverde on the right before the ball was played across goal for Vinicius Jr.
His finish past Hart was as cool as you like.
Within another four minutes it was 2-0, this time Modric showing the word panic just isn’t in his vocabulary. 
The little Croatian silenced Scotland fans at the Euros with the outside of his right foot and here he did it again with another sensational finish.
Postecoglou waited before he made more changes but soon came a triple switch which saw Kyogo Furuhashi, Aaron Mooy and David Turnbull thrown on.
But in 76 minutes Madrid added a third.
Hazard was set up by Dani Carvajal inside the six-yard box with a chance he just couldn’t miss.
It was agonising for Celtic’s supporters but they backed their team until the very end and saluted their efforts at the sound of the final whistle with Postecoglou’s name ringing round the stadium.

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