The summer signing climbed off the bench for the second week in a row to fire a priceless goal

21:09, 30 Jul 2025Updated 22:00, 30 Jul 2025

In one of the world’s oldest cities a Rangers team in its infancy started to come of age after a 1-1 draw, writes Scott McDermott from Athens.

Russell Martin’s side produced a mature performance to see off Panathinaikos in Athens – and move a step closer to the Champions League league phase.

Djeidi Gassama’s second-half strike was enough to earn Gers a draw, after Filip Duricic netted the opener, against the Greeks and to earn a battling draw in Athens and secure a 3-1 aggregate victory.

And for new gaffer Martin, it was a huge result so early in his Ibrox reign. His side were under the cosh at times in the Olympic Stadium and had to defend stoutly.

But just nine miles from the Acropolis, it was Rui Vitoria’s men whose Euro hopes were left in ruins.

Gassama – only signed a fortnight ago from Sheffield Wednesday – made a crucial contribution again, just as he did in the Ibrox first-leg.

The Frenchman came off the bench after an hour and buried a chance to make it 1-1 – and silence the Athens crowd.

Rangers now face Czech side Viktoria Plzen in the third qualifying round next week. Here are Record Sport’s five talking points from the Olympic Stadium

Gass Fire

Has a player ever become more of a fans’ favourite so early in their Rangers career as Gassama?

The French winger has only been at Ibrox a couple of weeks and he’s already wowed supporters with two stunning goals in Europe.

Gassama made an immediate impact in the first-leg in Glasgow, coming off the bench to produce a terrific finish which put Rangers 2-0 up.

Martin must have been tempted to start him in Athens but resisted, knowing he could provide a spark as a sub.

Djeidi Gassama of Rangers celebrates scoring to make it 1-1

And he was at it again to sicken the Greeks. As soon as Panathinaikos got in front, Gassama was thrown on by his gaffer.

Within two minutes, a deft flick sent Nico Raskin racing clear into the box.

And after Danilo’s shot was saved, the Gas man drilled home a terrific goal in off the post

Dowell Defiance

Most Rangers fans expected forgotten man Kieran Dowell to be nowhere near Martin’s squad this season – never mind his starting line-up.

The midfielder hasn’t cut it at Ibrox and was shipped out on loan to League One outfit Birmingham City last term.

Gers punters were convinced he’d be out the door when Martin was appointed but instead he’s managed to cement a place in the team.

Whatever Martin sees in the 27-year-old, it’s been enough for him to put faith in Dowell for these huge Champions League qualifiers.

He could easily have been the fall guy with new boy Gassama fit and pushing for a start.

But again, the manager deployed Dowell on the right of his front three, with young Findlay Curtis on the other wing.

To be fair to the much-maligned Scouser, he might not have created much going forward – but he put in a brilliant defensive shift for the team. And he might have an Ibrox future yet.

Max Factor

Martin must find a solution to the Rangers left-back situation as the season goes on.

At the moment, he’s relying on new boy Max Aarons to play there and, of course, the Englishman can fill the role.

But it can’t be a long-term plan because against dangerous opposition in Athens, he struggled.

Max Aarons in action

Aarons was signed as a right-back, which is his natural position, but so far he can’t shift Gers skipper James Tavernier.

Jefte, who was the club’s left-back, hasn’t been given a look-in so far by the manager.

But Aarons didn’t look comfortable last night, up against ex-Manchester United kid Facunda Pellistri, especially in the first half.

Too often, he was caught napping or on the wrong side as Panathinaikos attacked – and almost cost Rangers a goal.

Basically, he looked like a right-back playing on the left.

You can get away with it for so long and maybe it’s a temporary fix for Martin right now.

But it can’t continue for a full campaign.

Olympic Tame

It was hot and humid in the Greek capital but nowhere near as hostile as it could have been for Rangers.

That was due to the game being switched from Panathinaikos’ own Apostolos Nikolaidis ground to the Olympic Stadium.

Granted, it allowed 40,000 of the home supporters to get in.

But in an arena which holds 70,000, it was never going to be as noisy or vociferous – despite the best efforts of Panathinaikos’ infamous Gate 13 Ultras.

The stadium move helped Martin and his players. With a huge running track around the pitch, it wasn’t a suffocating experience, even with high temperatures.

After a flurry of noise pre-kick-off – and early on when Martin’s men were under the cosh – it quietened down, largely due to the away side taking the sting out of the atmosphere.

And when Gassama struck, it killed their hope.

Resilient Rangers

In the Athens heat, with 40,000 home fans baying for blood, this was never going to be a pretty performance from Rangers.

And in a tense first half, Martin’s men found themselves under the cosh as Panathinaikos pushed to overturn the two-goal deficit.

The visitors could easily have buckled under pressure but they held firm, showing grit, determination – and courage.

With Jack Butland back to somewhere near his best behind a solid defence marshalled superbly by John Souttar and Nasser Djiga, they frustrated the Greeks for large parts of the game.

Rangers’ Nasser Djiga in action

Not just with the defensive work but – at times – with a calmness in possession that Martin demands.

The football isn’t perfect yet but no-one can say the players aren’t putting a shift in for him, which is a good sign.

That’s what got them the result here and helped them progress in the Champions League.

Given where he’s at in his Rangers’ tenure, it’s an achievement for the manager just to get through this tie.

And with Plzen up next, they’ve taken a huge step towards reaching the league phase.