Down but not out, Novo takes blame for stalemate Final Edition

For [Walter Smith], however, it was just "one of those nights"when describing Novo's performance. "Like all forwards, sometimes you get a situation when they go in for you and sometimes they don't, " said the Rangers manager. "Tonight the opportunities we created a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inHerald (Glasgow, Scotland)
Main Author DARRYL BROADFOOT AND HUGH MacDONALD AT IBROX
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Glasgow (UK) Gannett Media Corp 14.02.2008
Subjects
McCulloch, Lee
Smith, Walter
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Summary:For [Walter Smith], however, it was just "one of those nights"when describing Novo's performance. "Like all forwards, sometimes you get a situation when they go in for you and sometimes they don't, " said the Rangers manager. "Tonight the opportunities we created all fell to Nacho and he didn't manage to put one in. However, he has managed to get a few vital goals for us this season and unfortunately it wasn't his night tonight." Lee McCulloch acknowledged a frustrating night in the lone striker role but urged Rangers supporters to remain supportive of Smith's pragmatic 4-1-4-1 strategy. "I don't think anybody can question Walter Smith with the experience he has in Europe, " said McCulloch. "We did not create too many chances but we did create enough to have won the game." Jose Peseiro, the Panathinaikos manager, said both sides had been "afraid" to commit to attack fully and dismissed the match as a poor spectacle. However, he stressed that Rangers would pose a threat in the return leg. "I expect a tough match. Rangers are very strong in the counter-attack, " he said.