Rangers took a big step towards Europa League qualification and earned one of the historic European wins in the club's recent history with a 4-1 victory against Nice.

Philippe Clement's side, under pressure after falling 11 points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership at the weekend, continued their excellent form away from domestic matters.

Hamza Igamane was the standout for the Ibrox side, with two goals and an assist in an announcement performance. Vaclav Cerny and Mohamed Diomande also netted before a late Badredine Bouanani free-kick was a consolation for the hosts.

The Rangers Review were in attendance at Allianz Riviera, here's the big talking points analysed. 

The Thursday night love affair

The wins over Malmo and FCSB gave Rangers a foundation to build on in this new-look competition. The draw in Athens last time out was an unexpected bonus and put them on course to qualify. Rangers had something of a safety net given that their last outing is against Union Saint-Gilloise following the visit of Tottenham Hotspur and trip to face Manchester United.

Clement did not make any bold proclamations about the chances of progression pre-match. By half-time, he had the win that all-but takes his side into the next round. Nobody saw this coming. On a night where a draw would have been accepted, Rangers were left rueing that they didn’t win by an even greater margin after a commanding showing.

The Ibrox boss dismissed suggestions that his side are better suited to continental competition than they are their domestic duties. This was another example, though, of Rangers being able to raise their game in Europe. Thursday nights continue to bring out the best in Rangers as Clement matched the achievement that Steven Gerrard set in 2021 and equalled the Scottish record of seven consecutive away ties without defeat.

The trip to McDiarmid Park is a very different affair. Occasions like this must become the rule rather than the exception. Clement needed a performance at the very least. He got a result as well, and in some style.

Igamane call pays off

This was a significant move from Clement and it was quite the show of faith in Igamane given that the flashes of his promise have been sporadic this term. A goal against FCSB has been the highlight and this was a chance for him to prove that he is at the level required to move ahead of Cyriel Dessers and Danilo in the pecking order.

Clement referenced Igamane’s ability to hold the ball up behind as a key consideration. It probably wasn’t meant to be a criticism of Dessers, but that thought certainly came to mind given how weak that particular area of his game is.

Igamane should have opened the scoring after combining with Nedim Bajrami in a breakaway 10 minutes in. A woeful pass from the Albanian denied Igamane a clear effort and the chance was gone as Rangers failed to convert a 3v1 opening.

Igamane’s endeavour was repaid when Cerny made it 1-0. In injury time, he was alert to a dreadful pass from Mohamed Abdelmonem and rounded Bulka. He took all the time he had before converting. It was a goal that his all-round effort merited.

The Moroccan still clearly has much to learn. There is something endearing and interesting about him and supporters have bought into him. He will make mistakes, but they will watch him learn on the job and this outing will do so much for his confidence.

His second saw him collect a wayward pass from Rosario, knock it through his legs and then curl a low effort into the far corner. It was classy and cool. Igamane shrugged off a knock just before being replaced. He may well be needed on Sunday.

Rangers run riot

The concerns over the quality of this Rangers forward line have been evident and expressed for some time. This was a night that showed the good, the bad and the inconsistent. The decision making and execution in an early counterattack was wasteful, as was the chance that Cerny spurned after Connor Barron had done so well to press and win the ball back.

Within minutes, Clement’s side were two goals ahead. Cerny saw his strike take two deflections before evading keeper Marcin Bulka but the goal owed much to the tenacity of Igamane as he won the ball and then found his Czech mate.

The second was a howler from Pablo Rosario and a touch of class from Diomande. As the defender left a Dujon Sterling dink, Diomande nipped in behind and diverted it beyond Bulka.

Nice were masters of their own downfall. When Igamane made it three, this sparse home crowd gave up all hope. Rangers had been wasteful and clinical all in the one half.

Igamane doubled his tally and it was a case of how many Rangers would win by. The visitors looked like adding to their tally almost every time they ventured forward. In the end, they settled for four goals and three points.

 

Sterling contributes at both ends

The changing of the guard continues at right-back. Clement’s decision not to start James Tavernier against Dundee United at the weekend raised eyebrows. He made the same call here. Sterling got the nod and backed it up once again, and now looks like the pick in that position. Clement must be wondering if he should have made the switch earlier.

The Tavernier situation has been spoken about so often over the course of the campaign. In what is left of it, the captain will continue to be central to many conversations. He will still have a considerable part to play for Clement’s side. But this last week feels like a significant one in Tavernier’s term. No player should be selected on reputation alone and Clement is picking Sterling on form.

A solid, quite but effective first half performance in a defensive sense was added to by a rare assist. His ball over the top of the Nice defence wasn’t dealt with and Diomande did the rest.

Come the hour mark, Sterling’s job and his night were done as Tavernier entered the action. He assumed the armband from Butland. Taking back his starting jersey will not be as easy now.

No clean bonus

There was confusion on the Cote d’Azur. Referee Ricardo De Burgos pointed to the spot and signalled for handball. Initially it looked like John Souttar was the culprit after blocking a Youssoufa Moukoko shot but a reply showed that he would have been hard done by if he had been penalised. De Burgos watched an incident involving a handball claim against Sterling and ruled that no offence had taken place. Just for good measure, he had a look at a third possible claim against Barron after a challenge on Badredine Bouanani. Rangers were rightly granted three reprieves.

Jack Butland saved a strike from Gaetan Laborde and then gathered a header from the striker. Nice looked threatening in stages but were shell-shocked by the way Rangers had taken control of this frantic encounter.

There was no way back. Butland saved again from Laborde and parried a Hicham Boudaoui strike. The clean sheet was all that was needed for the perfect night. A stunning free-kick from Bouanani beat Butland but didn't take any shine off this one.