Football
Rangers Fans Fume After Vaclav Cerny Misses Sitter In Europa League Defeat
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Get to know James Chittick betterPublished04 Oct 2024
Rangers ers have taken to social media after a shocking Vaclav Cerny miss cost them dearly in Thursday night’s Europa League defeat to Olympique Lyonnais.
Philippe Clement’s side were beaten 4-1 at Ibrox, but could have been a goal up in the opening stages.
Czech winger Vaclav Cerny spurned a gilt-edged chance to put Rangers ahead early on. With the goal gaping, he skied it over the bar from six yards out.
One of those opportunities that looked harder to miss than score, Cerny fell to his knees in disbelief after his shot flew into row Z.
Moments later, Malick Fofana put Lyon ahead before Tom Lawrence’s quick-fire equaliser.
But a brace from Alexandre Lacazette followed by Fofana’s second meant Rangers had little else to celebrate on the night.
The loss sees them drop to 17th in the Europa League table under its new format.
Vaclav Cerny Miss Baffles TNT Commentary Team
Watching the replay while commentating for TNT Sports, former Rangers and Scotland striker Ally McCoist said: “I’ve got no idea [how Cerny missed].
“Just keep it down and hit the target. It’s the easiest of tap-ins.
“Remarkable miss, remarkable.”
Václav Cerny has missed a sitter early on for Rangers against Lyon 😳
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/TzFiXiUwqa
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) October 3, 2024
Rangers Fans Can’t Believe Vaclav Cerny Miss
And McCoist wasn’t the only one stunned by the missed chance.
ers were caught somewhere between despair and disbelief after watching their man fail to score from such close range.
That's even worse than I thought.
Jesus Christ pic.twitter.com/aoFxhV4L8U
— Pena Cartel 🗿 (@PenaCartel) October 3, 2024
This particularly damning angle shows just how much of the goal Cerny had to aim at.
But it’s not the first time he has missed what looked to be a certain goal, either.
Another fan on X (formerly Twitter) added: “The significance of this Cerny miss was huge. That’s two massive misses in both Europa League games now.
“I’m completely unconvinced by him. One-dimensional.”
Meanwhile, Rangers fan Farva Rangers said: “You just can’t defend this. Bar a good 60 minutes on his full debut against Motherwell, he’s chronic for us.
“This and the miss in Malmo are inexcusable.”
It seems patience is running thin amongst the Ibrox faithful after Cerny’s recent performances.
Rangers return to league action with Scottish Premiership games against St. Johnstone and Kilmarnock before hosting Romanian side FCSB on Thursday 24 October in their third Europa League match.
After that, the challenge in Europe ramps up even further. Philippe Clement’s side are still to play English giants Manchester United and Tottenham, as well as Nice and Union Saint-Gilloise to round out the league phase of this year’s competition.