It was a blockbuster night for Rangers in Europe as they steamrollered Nice to take a massive step towards the Europa League knockout phase.
And it has got people talking about the Scottish Premiership outfit across the globe as they shrugged off their domestic struggles to thump the Ligue 1 side on their own turf. A Hamza Igamane double alongside goals from Vaclav Cerny and Mohamad Diomande led to Rangers surging toward victory – while Badredine Bouanani offered the hosts little consolation with his late free-kick
In truth, it could have been much worse for Nice who now look to be heading out of Europe’s second tier competition – and are taking pelters in France. In contract, it has eased some of the mounting pressure on Philippe Clement after a lacklustre campaign back on Scottish soil. Record Sport takes a look at what the world media is saying about the result.
L’Equipe (France)
“Everything could have been different if the penalty whistled at the start in favour of the Nice by Ricardo De Burgos had been upheld. But challenged by the VAR, the Spanish referee decided otherwise and finally reversed his decision after an interminable triple check. The rest was nothing but a long ordeal, barely alleviated by the sumptuous free kick from the left by Bouanani. Franck Haise’s men could have been punished more severely given the number of opportunities they conceded. A really had a bad evening.”
Kicker (Germany)
“If there is one who had fun tonight, it is him. The home scorer of Glasgow Rangers Hamza Igamane scored two goals and provided an assist against Nice. Although he was not a starter at the start of the season, the young Moroccan (22 years old) has earned his place with the Scottish team. Undeniably the man of the match.”
RMC Sport (France)
“Hit by a cascade of absentees, the Nice completely took on water this Thursday against a Rangers helped by the incredible errors of Nice (4-1). Qualification is in danger with three days to go. A total shipwreck. Certainly greatly diminished by a host of absences, but above all pathetic from start to finish or almost.”
Bold (Denmark)
“Nice is almost scraping the bottom of the Europa League after five rounds have been played. And that is partly because they were humiliated on Thursday when they took on Rangers at home close to the French coast.”
Foot Mercato (France)
“At the start of the match, Nice seemed too timid and suffered from the Scottish waves. The club from Scotland proceeded on the counterattack and wanted to punish on the transitions. But Nice showed too much wait-and-see attitude. Bouanani reduced the gap with a free kick at the end of the match. But that’s all. With this new slap in the face, Nice is second from bottom in the standings and can almost say goodbye to qualification.”
Voetbol Nieuws (Belgium)
“A coach who can be satisfied is Clement. The Belgian is having an inconsistent season with Rangers, but did book a convincing victory on Thursday. The Scots won with a comfortable 1-4 score against Nice.”
La Parisien (France)
“Miracles are for others. Nice remains stuck at the bottom of the Europa League standings. Against Glasgow Rangers, the absence of too many players proved prohibitive. Because Nice is hit by a cascade of absentees for this match the Nice coach had summoned five young people who had never played a single minute of play in an official match.”