Rangers climbed back to the top of the cinch Premiership with a 3-1 win over Hibernian at Ibrox which had its fair of thrills and spills.

Scott Wright thought he had put Rangers ahead in the 21st minute when he slotted home after visiting keeper David Marshall had saved a James Tavernier penalty, but the Light Blues winger was penalised for encroachment and the effort was disallowed.

The home side did not have to wait much longer to get their noses in front though, with Gers skipper Tavernier making amends for his miss by firing in his 22nd goal of the season.

Myziane Maolida poked in a shock equaliser on the stroke of half-time, but Gers responded immediately with Cyriel Dessers putting the home side back in front with a header before the interval.

Second-half substitute Rabbi Matondo then drove in a wonderful third goal in the 85th minute to take Rangers two points ahead of Celtic having both played 30 fixtures.

The Hoops travel to bottom side Livingston on Sunday firm favourites to get the win which will set up nicely for next week’s Old Firm derby at Ibrox.

Every passing week brings more tension to the title race and Philippe Clement’s side knew what was at stake.

The Govan side, with left-back Borna Barisic and midfielder Todd Cantwell reinstated, took an immediate grip of the game against the unchanged Easter Road outfit.

Wright fired a shot just wide from the edge of the box then saw his close-range effort from a Dessers cut-back blocked by Hibs defender Jordan Obita before Marshall parried a long-range effort from Mohamed Diomande.

However, referee David Dickinson was then asked by VAR Andrew Dallas to check his pitchside monitor for a possible foul by Hibs’ Nectarios Triantis, with his arm on Gers defender John Souttar at a previous corner and he pointed to the spot.

Marshall blocked Tavernier’s penalty – as he had at Easter Road in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup earlier this month – but Wright followed up to hammer in the rebound, only for VAR to confirm he had encroached and a free-kick was given to the visitors.

Five minutes later, Tavernier made up for his mistake when he volleyed in from 16 yards after John Lundstram’s cross had only been partially cleared, with Hibs defender Will Fish unable to keep the ball out.

Seven minutes were added on at the end of the first half and Hibs took advantage to level. Elie Youan set up fellow attacker Maolida inside the box and he beat Connor Goldson, got in front of Tavernier and prodded the ball past Jack Butland.

Tension immediately engulfed Ibrox but that was alleviated in the sixth minute of added time when Dessers, who had moments earlier saw an effort saved by Marshall, headed a Cantwell cross in off the bar.

Hibs had to withstand more pressure at the start of the second half with Marshall making saves from Cantwell and Dessers but at 2-1 there was still underlying anxiety among Gers fans, erupting when Dessers failed to hit the target from eight yards from a Tavernier cut-back.

The game flattened out for a spell as both sides used their respective benches to change things up.

In the 77th minute Gers substitute Tom Lawrence opted to cut the ball back instead of shooting when through on the angle against Marshall and a glorious chance was gone.

However, another Rangers replacement, Matondo, took matters into his own hands when taking possession 20 yards from goal, sending the ball fizzing past the helpless Marshall and any nerves were banished.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers hopes a derby ticket breakthrough can lead to the restoration of traditional allocations for away fans against Rangers.

The Scottish Professional Football League announced an agreement had been struck to ensure about five per cent of Ibrox and Celtic Park will be reserved for away fans during league games between the Glasgow rivals.

In 2018, Rangers tore up the long-standing convention that saw about 7,500 fans travel across the city on derby days and reduced that figure to about 10 per cent of that total. Inevitably, Celtic followed suit.

The situation developed that neither club accepted tickets for each other’s grounds for safety reasons and Celtic refused Rangers’ request for tickets for the December 30 game, with the SPFL unable to enforce vague regulations over away allocations.

A compromise has been reached that will see about 2,500-3,000 away fans attend games from next season, but not the remaining two games between the cinch Premiership title challengers this term.

Rodgers said: “It’s absolutely great news for everyone. It’s certainly something this club have championed for a number of years. It’s the iconic nature of the fixture and it’s because of the supporters.

“So to be able to get 2,500 supporters into the stadium, and hopefully that can grow as well, but to have them in is everything.

“The game is about the players on the field and the supporters in the stand and, especially in this fixture, this is really what makes it. So it’s absolutely fantastic news and not before time as well.

“The aim at Celtic was never to change it, so if it can get back to where it was before it was changed then that would be absolutely great news for everyone.”

Rangers manager Philippe Clement also welcomed the news.

“Everyone loves football with two sides if fans sing towards each other and to have this atmosphere,” the Belgian said.

“No-one enjoyed the Covid period when there were no fans. That was really difficult.

“For me it was also really strange to play at Celtic Park with no supporters of ourselves, that was a first time for me.

“It was a strange experience. I think everybody, every player, every manager wants both sides in the stadium and football is about that. It is entertainment from two teams so it is a very positive thing from my side.”

The SPFL stated both clubs would provide ticket allocations of “around five per cent”.

“This will be effective from Scottish Premiership season 2024-25, subject to all necessary requirements being satisfied at both Ibrox and Celtic Park,” a statement added.

“It does not affect the remaining two league matches between the clubs in season 2023-24, which will remain at a zero allocation for away supporters.”

The capacity of Ibrox is 50,817, while Celtic Park holds 60,411.

Rangers stated the agreement had been reached “following input from both clubs, the SPFL, local authorities, and the league’s broadcast partners”.

A club statement added: “While this will not affect the two remaining league derbies this season, from next season, both clubs will be required to provide five per cent of their stadia to the away team for Old Firm games only — mirroring the UEFA European match model.

“Rangers’ position has always been for away supporters to be present at these games and with this move, a significant number of our fans will be able to support our team at Parkhead in seasons ahead.”

The Ibrox club stated that alternative seating arrangements for affected supporters in the Broomloan Stand had been identified.

Philippe Clement is confident that John Lundstram will extend his contract at Rangers.

The 30-year-old midfielder, who signed from Sheffield United in 2021, has found good form since the Belgian boss took over at Ibrox last October but his current deal runs out in the summer.

Ahead of the home cinch Premiership game against Hibernian on Saturday, Clement was asked if he was hopeful and confident of Lundstram staying in Govan.

He said: “Yes, I am totally confident about that, that there’s a lot of love from both sides, so that there will be a solution.”

Clement was pleased to report that Abdallah Sima, Ross McCausland, Kieran Dowell and Dujon Sterling are back in training and in contention for Saturday following recovery from various injuries, although Ridvan Yilmaz is  out and a doubt for next week’s Old Firm game against Celtic at Ibrox, with Oscar Cortes, Ryan Jack and Danilo still on the sidelines.

Attacker, Sima, 22  is on loan from Brighton and had notched 15 goals this season before picking up a thigh injury in January while with the Senegal squad at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Of his returning players in general, and on Sima on particular, the Gers boss said: “They are contention but of course not to play 90 minutes – then it is about choices, if they can play 15, 20 minutes you cannot of course have four or five players like that on the bench.

“So we need to take that into account and make good choices.

“Of course Sima has been out a long time so you cannot expect miracles from the start but he has shown his quality, he has his power, his pace, he has the appetite for goals and he came back to training in a good way, so that’s positive.

“It’s about building rhythm again, making him stronger again and then I think he is going to play an important part in this last two months.”

Left-back Yilmaz withdrew from the Turkey squad over the weekend after limping out of Friday’s friendly defeat in Hungary with a reported thigh strain.

Clement said: “It is not going to be long, long term.

“We are going to see next week.

“There is a possibility that he can to be fit for next week but it is still a doubt so we will see next week.”

Lee McCulloch envisages the cinch Premiership title race going to the last day of the season because he still believes stuttering Celtic have too much quality to let in-form Rangers pull away in the run-in.

The Hoops looked destined for a procession to a third successive championship as Rangers floundered under Michael Beale early in the campaign.

However, Philippe Clement has galvanised the Ibrox side since his arrival in October, hauling them right back into the mix, with Brendan Rodgers’ side dropping points in six of their last 17 games.

Celtic currently top the table by a point, although Rangers have a game in hand, and McCulloch, who played for the Ibrox club from 2007 until 2015, feels it is still far too close to call.

“I don’t see an obvious favourite,” he told the PA news agency as he helped launch a July friendly between Manchester United and Rangers at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh.

“I can see it going as far as the last day. Celtic are getting players back, the likes of Cameron Carter-Vickers, Callum McGregor and Reo Hatate are massive players for Celtic, and you can’t disregard that.

“Celtic have maybe had their ups and downs in the last months and they’ve maybe not played to their capabilities this season but they’re a very good team.

“You can’t just disregard them and say ‘right, that’s it, Rangers are going to win the league’. There’s a lot of football to be played until the end of the season, so it will be interesting to see which players and which team holds their nerve.”

McCulloch noted that Rangers – with 19 wins from their last 22 league games – have “come on leaps and bounds” since Clement replaced Beale but he still feels they must prove they can handle the pressure of a title run-in.

“When you look back at the start of the season there was a disconnect between the players and the fans, so all credit goes to the manager for bringing a togetherness back,” he said.

“They’re now in a tremendous situation where if they win their game in hand they can go two points clear. The Old Firm games are going to be very important but, with just nine games to go, every game is going to be massive.

“I think there is definitely more pressure on Rangers now than there was at the start of the season but there is also pressure on Celtic because of the way they’ve played in the last couple of years and the dominance they’ve had. There is different types of pressure on the two teams.

“The bulk of the Celtic players will not really have had a pressured run-in but you could say the same for the Rangers players as well. It will be interesting to see over the final games how certain individuals and how the Rangers and Celtic squads react to the pressure.”

Dundee’s home game against Rangers has been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch which means Celtic go into the international break top of the cinch Premiership.

The reigning champions had put pressure on Phillipe Clement’s side with a 3-1 win over St Johnstone on Saturday to go one point clear.

There was a 9.15am pitch inspection on Sunday morning ahead of the scheduled noon kick-off at the Scot Foam Stadium at Dens Park, with a second inspection by match referee Don Robertson taking place an hour later.

And Dundee released a statement at 10.28am on their X account which read: “Following the referee’s second pitch inspection this morning, today’s cinch Premiership match with Rangers has been postponed.

“Recent rainfall has meant the pitch has become waterlogged and the match has been called off.”

Rangers said the club would “make further comment in due course” in a brief statement acknowledging the postponement.

Rangers have nine fixtures remaining while Celtic have eight, with two Old Firm games still to be played out.

The Gers return to action with a home game against Hibernian on March 30, the same day Dundee travel to Tayside rivals St Johnstone.

Rangers manager Philippe Clement has backed Jack Butland to continue showing his international class in the domestic run-in after the goalkeeper suffered a double blow on Thursday.

Butland was left out of Gareth Southgate’s latest England squad before Rangers crashed out of the Europa League with a 1-0 home defeat by Benfica.

Some reports had claimed the 31-year-old was on the verge of an England call-up for the first time since 2018 as his impressive Ibrox form coincided with an injury to Newcastle’s Nick Pope and Aaron Ramsdale’s lack of game time for Arsenal.

However, Southgate named Ramsdale and Crystal Palace keeper Sam Johnstone alongside number one Jordan Pickford for his team’s upcoming friendlies against Brazil and Belgium.

Former Birmingham and Stoke player Butland made his England debut at the age of 19 and won the last of his nine caps in 2018, before a move to Palace stalled his career.

However, he has been in outstanding form for Rangers since his summer move.

When asked if he was surprised England have overlooked his goalkeeper, Clement said: “I said from the beginning I will never interfere with whatever another manager needs to do out of selection because we don’t know all the details.

“Jack was ready to be there. So I think it proves that in England they have a lot of really good goalkeepers if he’s not there. That’s the only important thing.

“I spoke with Jack on Thursday afternoon but it was not really necessary because he was focused on the game, as he showed.

“Those are the things in life and he continues working hard for Rangers. Then other things can come. You create the possibility.

“The most positive thing is that, in the last couple of weeks a lot of things have been written about that, about Jack going to the England squad.

“I didn’t hear one person say, ‘oof, that’s a strange thing’. So in that he proved a lot already. He will continue doing that in the coming months.”

Rangers lacked quality in the final third against Benfica on Thursday and fell to a 3-2 aggregate defeat after being badly exposed on the counter-attack following their own corner.

But they have plenty to play for as the cinch Premiership leaders look forward to a trip to Dundee on Sunday and a Scottish Gas Scottish Cup semi-final against Hearts next month.

Clement said: “It’s already a memorable season. How long ago did Rangers last win the League Cup?

“We are hungry for the two other trophies. We are going to stick together and work really hard to focus on those two goals.

“I read a lot in the last couple of weeks that it was maybe better we were not in Europe any more. I didn’t agree and I still don’t agree about that but it’s now about focusing on the two other trophies.”

Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland has promised to “keep knocking on the door” after his hopes of an England comeback later this month were quashed.

Butland, who has nine caps to his name but was last called up in 2019, had been tipped for Gareth Southgate’s squad to face Brazil and Belgium.

Established number one Jordan Pickford will be supported by Aaron Ramsdale and Sam Johnstone for those games but Butland has not given up all hope of a late bid for this summer’s European Championship.

The 31-year-old, who acted as Pickford’s deputy at the 2018 World Cup, reacted to his omission after the Gers’ narrow Europa League defeat to Benfica.

Asked if he had been contacted about a possible call-up, Butland told TNT Sport: “No, no discussions. But if your name’s being chucked in it’s because you’re doing something right.

“When I found out I wasn’t in the squad, it was back to normal, continue trying to do what I do here. That’s the only reason I’ve been in those discussions in the first place, because I’ve been playing and playing well.

“Could I? Should I? It doesn’t really matter. I’ve worked hard enough, I’ve done enough. Whatever the decision will be, there’s three fantastic goalkeepers going. I’ll just keep knocking on the door and see what happens.”

Rangers manager Philippe Clement was proud of his players despite their narrow defeat by Benfica.

The Light Blues were in a good position to reach the Europa League quarter-finals following a 2-2 draw in Lisbon last week but they fell just short against the Portuguese champions.

Rangers were caught on the counter-attack as Rafa Silva netted the only goal of the second leg in the 66th minute at Ibrox.

Clement said: “It was a close tie but I’m proud of what my players showed. We played a better game than we did in Lisbon, better on the ball, but you need to be on your toes to compete with this kind of team with a much bigger budget.

“Everyone did that, everybody raised their level. Then you need to take your moments and we didn’t take enough, and they took theirs.”

The goal originated from a Rangers corner. The visitors emerged with the ball on the edge of their box and the home side did not have a player within 20 yards of their own half.

A simple ball forward was headed on by Angel Di Maria and Silva raced clear of Mohamed Diomande before slotting home.

The offside flag was raised but the VAR officials decided Silva was just inside his half when Di Maria headed the ball on.

Clement said: “We made a wrong decision for the goal. If Dio just runs with the attacker then nothing happens.

“But he is a young player who played for the first time at this level and he played a really good game.”

When pressed on why Rangers looked so exposed at their own corners, Clement said: “They have a lot of quality, that’s one thing. The goal against, we made the wrong decision.

“I don’t think they created a lot of chances from that. We also had counter attacks in the first half from set-pieces.”

Rangers struggled to create chances to get back in the game until substitute Todd Cantwell stabbed wide in stoppage-time and Clement admitted his injury list had taken its toll.

“At the moment we don’t have the same impact we had a few months ago,” he said. “All the guys who came in have come out with injury. It’s about hard work now to make them better again.

“Like Todd, if you only have one training session after eight weeks out you cannot expect miracles. You need to be lucky.

“It could have happened. He had one moment at the end which was just past the post. You gamble on that.

“That’s the situation and everyone is working very hard to get a bigger squad fit for the next few weeks and months.”

Rangers were knocked out of the Europa League after conceding the only goal against Benfica at Ibrox to lose 3-2 on aggregate.

Philippe Clement’s side were caught on the counter-attack by a simple forward ball in the 66th minute and Rafa Silva’s goal stood following a VAR check after initially being ruled out for offside.

Rangers had twice taken the lead in Lisbon last week but a penalty and an own goal cost them victory in the first leg and they could not take advantage of several chances in a tighter affair in Glasgow.

The Rangers fans in the Broomloan Stand produced a massive pre-match display that showed their sights were very much on the road to Dublin for the final on May 22 ahead of the last-16 second leg.

But there will be no repeat of the club’s run to the 2022 final and the cinch Premiership leaders must now focus on what could still be a highly successful domestic season with a treble a real possibility.

Benfica had some good early possession but Rangers had the first real chance when Tom Lawrence combined with Fabio Silva and fired a shot which Anatoliy Trubin let through his legs. The visiting goalkeeper was fortunate to see the ball trundle wide after hitting off his leg.

Lawrence soon had another chance when James Tavernier’s clever low corner gave him a free shot at goal 15 yards out but he failed to connect properly.

Jack Butland showed good hands in the slippery conditions to hold Alexander Bah’s long-range strike.

The vast majority of the 50,000 fans, including the Benfica supporters, paid tribute in the 25th minute to young Rangers fan Thomas McAllister, who died while in Lisbon for the first leg.

The first half continued in a more cagey fashion than that 2-2 draw in Portugal.

John Souttar was impressing in central defence for Rangers and his cross almost fell for Cyriel Dessers before Scott Wright slipped in the act of shooting from 22 yards and the ball sailed over.

Rangers survived a dangerous Benfica attack after John Lundstram fluffed a pass inside his own half.

The home side had a great chance on the counter-attack before the break following good work from Wright, but Lawrence picked the wrong option and played in a clearly offside Dessers.

Dessers did get a chance early in the second half after Wright burst past two opponents and played the striker in. The forward might have gone for goal first time but he took a touch and his shot was heading for the far corner but deflected just wide.

The home side kept on the pressure but Benfica worked a good chance for Casper Tengstedt following a slick break. The substitute shot straight at Butland from 12 yards.

Rangers were again exposed from a counter-attack as Benfica took the lead for the first time in the tie.

Angel Di Maria headed on a ball over the top and Rafa Silva raced clear before slotting home. The offside flag went up but a lengthy VAR check decided the goalscorer was just inside his own half when the ball was played on, and the goal was given.

Rangers’ attempts to get back in the game were not helped by the surface water on the pitch slowing the ball down amid a day of incessant rain in Glasgow and Butland saved well from Bah as Benfica looked to finish off the tie.

Lundstram got an effort on target in the latter stages but Trubin saved comfortably and Rangers’ hopes ended when substitute Todd Cantwell stabbed wide in stoppage-time.

Bullish Philippe Clement has challenged Rangers to make the rest of Europe sit up and take note by reaching the quarter-finals of the Europa League at the expense of Benfica.

The two sides are locked at 2-2 after the first leg in Lisbon and the Ibrox boss, who is ready to welcome influential midfielder Todd Cantwell back into his squad after injury, believes it would be a statement result for his players if they could eliminate the Portuguese title chasers on Thursday.

“We are not naive, we know that Benfica has a really talented squad with a lot of experience also,” Clement said at his pre-match press conference.

“They have World Cup winners in their team, they have a lot of really big talents who will go for a lot of money after this season maybe and other players who have played at a really high level before.

“We know it will be a really big surprise in all of Europe if we can take out Benfica, but we are really hungry to do that.”

Clement told his Rangers players that, if they have aspirations of playing at the very top level, then it is nights like Thursday when they can showcase their abilities.

“It would be something really exciting, because they will show something towards all of Europe (if they get through),” said the manager. “For their career, it can be something really special.

“When you do special things like this, you can come more into attention. I understand the story here in the club that if players can make a step higher than Rangers and there’s a good deal for the club, you need to accept that and find other players to replace them in a good way.

“So in evenings like this, they can make steps in that way. But the most important thing is to understand that it is not an individual thing to show yourself. They can only show themselves if they show themselves as a team.”

Clement admits Benfica are slight favourites, but having led former side Club Brugge to a 2-2 draw in the Bernabeu in October 2019, he will not allow his team to go into the match with any sense of inferiority in front of another capacity Ibrox crowd

“Yes, I think so,” he said when asked if Gers were the underdogs. “If you’re realistic, yes. But in my heart, no.

“I’m always a realistic guy, but I’m a realistic guy who sets the standards high and I know, and I’ve seen, that this team can do that. I told them before the Benfica game that with Brugge we drew 2-2 with Real Madrid and we deserved that.

“We could have won that one, but this Rangers team is better than that Brugge team, so I believe we can win against whatever team we play when things fall on our side. I really believe that.

“I know that Benfica rested four or five players at the weekend towards this game. But my players are ready, I saw enough today, I see the freshness is back, the hunger is really big.

“We know we need to play above our level to qualify, but we are going to do everything to do that and the support of the fans can give something extra.

“This game was sold out really fast. Although it is a really early kick-off and a lot of people have to take a day off work to get to the stadium, we could have sold the stadium two, three times.”

Dujon Sterling will miss out with a minor injury, while Ross McCausland is a doubt, but Cantwell is set to return after missing the last five matches with a hamstring issue.

“He is ready to play an amount of minutes,” said Clement. “He is clearly not ready for 90 minutes, so then it’s about deciding whether to start him or not.

“He feels good and he was good in the training so I’m happy to see him back.”

A 76-year-old match programme from one of Rangers’ first post-war fixtures overseas is expected to change hands for a four-figure sum when it goes under the hammer next month.

The 16-page publication produced for the Ibrox club’s friendly against this week’s Europa League last-16 opponents Benfica in Lisbon on 10 February 1948 will be given a guide price of between £800 and £1,200 when details go live online this Friday ahead of its auction at Glasgow’s Trades Hall on 10 April.

It has been described by auctioneer and sporting memorabilia specialist David Convery as “one of the rarest Rangers and indeed Scottish post-Second World War match programmes in existence”.

Even allowing for the fact the spine has been taped, Scottish football memorabilia enthusiasts forecast that the programme, printed in an era of paper rationing across the world, will appeal to many Gers collectors and fetch significantly more than the reserve price.

It fell into the hands of fledgling Edinburgh collector Neil Brown when gifted to him by his Sunday school teacher as part of a random batch of programmes in the early 1960s.

The now 70-year-old Hearts supporter has no idea how such a rare item made its way back to Scotland following a match – some two and a half years after the end of the war – in which few of a Rangers persuasion beyond team and officials were in attendance.

“When I was 11 years old, my Sunday school teacher found out I’d started collecting programmes and brought in a bag of about 15 old programmes for me,” said Brown.

“I had no awareness at that point that it would be of any value in the future because in those days I was just collecting as a hobby.

“It was only probably in the 1980s, when people started to take a real interest in the value of such things, that I started to realise the significance of this particular programme and how rare it might be.

“I’ve collected all kinds of sport and music memorabilia over the years, such as comics, magazines, vinyl and football programmes, and it has all got a bit out of control!

“It has been fantastic to own such a rare item for so long but I’ve been trying to down-size for some time so now, unfortunately, is the time for it to go and let someone else enjoy it.”

Brown contacted the auctioneers in January and by sheer coincidence his prized programme – with a cover price of 1 Escudo – will be going under the hammer just weeks after Benfica and Rangers were reunited in the Europa League. The two sides are tied at 2-2 ahead of Thursday’s second leg at Ibrox.

Their encounter at Lisbon’s Estadio Nacional 76 years ago was the first ever meeting between the clubs and it represented Rangers’ second post-war match overseas – their first was against the Combined Services in Hannover in October 1945.

Bill Struth’s Gers side defeated the Portuguese 3-0 in front of an estimated crowd of 60,000, with Jimmy Duncanson scoring twice and Willie Thornton also on target.

As a romantic aside, former Rangers player and manager Willie Waddell met his wife Hilda when she was working as an air hostess on the flight to Lisbon for the match.

UEFA is bracing itself for the “extremely challenging” possibility of a Rangers v Liverpool Europa League final in Dublin.

European football’s governing body has reserved the 82,000-capacity Croke Park stadium as a potential fan zone, but is concerned even that might not be enough to accommodate everyone who may come to Dublin without a ticket to soak up the atmosphere for the match on Wednesday, May 22.

Both clubs have big followings in Ireland and remain in contention to reach the finale at the Aviva Stadium, with Rangers level with Benfica heading into the second leg at Ibrox on Thursday and Liverpool 5-1 up against Sparta Prague with the return at Anfield to come.

There are other permutations too which may also prove a headache for UEFA, whose general secretary Theodore Theodoridis said on Tuesday: “One of the biggest challenges for us this year could be the Europa League final.

“Under certain conditions, because of the potential teams that could qualify, this might end up being the most challenging for us.

“We know they will bring a number of supporters without tickets and then there is the issue of potential public viewing venues.

There are a couple of pairings – I won’t speculate on the names but you are clever enough to work it out – that would be extremely challenging to find ways to accommodate everybody that will be present for that game

“We have already reserved Croke Park as a potential public viewing venue, but that could not be enough.

“There are a couple of pairings – I won’t speculate on the names but you are clever enough to work it out – that would be extremely challenging to find ways to accommodate everybody that will be present for that game.

“We are working on this already, together with the local authorities and also Football Supporters Europe.

“If we do get to one of those scenarios, we will also go to the supporters of the clubs involved to find the best solution.

“The biggest problem we have now is whether Croke Park would be big enough – because we think we would need more alternatives for public viewing for the people who will be in Dublin.

“It’s not an easy operation and it is just for a couple of scenarios which would make it extremely complicated – especially with clubs who already have a large fanbase on the island of Ireland.

“But we are working on it and will involve the fanbases as well. We have to see who gets to the semis and then we will start to work with them as well.”

Nick Montgomery was pleased to report Martin Boyle is stable in hospital after injury curtailed his part in nine-man Hibernian’s 2-0 Scottish Gas Scottish Cup defeat by Rangers at Easter Road.

Midfielder John Lundstram bundled in the opener in the 23rd minute after goalkeeper David Marshall had saved a penalty from captain James Tavernier before Boyle was taken away on a stretcher after landing following a duel with defender John Souttar.

Hibs defender Jordan Obita was sent off in the 68th minute for picking up the second of two yellow cards for using an arm to stop substitute Rabbi Matondo before Nathan Moriah-Welsh was shown a straight red by referee Steven McLean three minutes later for a two-footed challenge on Lundstram.

Striker Fabio Silva added a second as Rangers joined Aberdeen and Celtic in the semi-final draw, with Championship side Morton hosting Hearts on Monday night.

Hibs boss Montgomery gave a positive post-match update on Boyle, saying: “I’ve just had a report that Martin is stable and that’s the most important thing.

“Football is just a game and while Martin’s an important player for us, he’s a human being too.

“I think it’s a bit of concussion and maybe a little bit of neck pain. Fingers crossed he makes a speedy recovery because he was in a bit of pain.”

Montgomery was unimpressed with Lundstram’s reaction to Moriah-Welsh’s tackle.

He said: “I haven’t seen Jordan’s incident to be honest. I know he was on a yellow. He tried to hold Matondo off but apparently he’s caught him on the back of the head with his arm.

“Jordan is an experienced player so, if he has done something that is deemed a yellow card, you don’t want that.

“Nathan is just 21 years old, he’s new to first-team football. And, to be honest, it was right in front of me.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for John Lundstram. He’s a top, top player. But I thought the way he went down, Nathan didn’t catch him.

“I’ve seen that one back and he’s gone across him to try to block him playing a ball down the line, probably knock it out for a throw-in. But John has gone down.

“And the referee was very quick to give the card. To be honest, I was really surprised he didn’t go to the VAR monitor to have a look, considering it was three metres from where the incident happened.”

Rangers boss Philippe Clement called for “reckless” tackles to be taken out of the game as he discussed Moriah-Welsh’s red card.

He said: “If you put a hand or an arm in the face you can get a yellow, that everybody knows.

“The (Moriah-Welsh) tackle was a few yards away from me. It is a reckless tackle with the studs in front and it doesn’t matter then if you break a leg or not.

“It is just reckless. I think it is important to get that kind of tackle out of the game.

“In the last couple of weeks sometimes when we didn’t get the red card and I was not happy about that.

“I think tackles like that are not good for Scottish football, English football, Belgian football, German football. Players need to know if you tackle like that you get a red card.

“It is for nobody good because it is a danger to injure someone if you go in like that.”

The Belgian was frustrated with Dujon Sterling and his replacement Ross McCausland having to come off and both will be assessed ahead of Thursday night’s Europa League last-16 game against Benfica at Ibrox, with the tie balanced at 2-2 following last week’s game in Lisbon.

Ryan Jack, Abdallah Sima, Oscar Cortes, Kieran Dowell and Danilo are also carrying injuries.

Clement said: “I am not happy, of course, that Dujon and Ross had to come off. It is not a good thing.

“We are going to see in the next couple of days if they are going to be available for Thursday or not.”

Rangers booked their place in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 win over nine-man Hibernian at Easter Road.

Midfielder John Lundstram bundled in the opener in the 23rd minute after Hibs keeper David Marshall had saved a penalty from captain James Tavernier.

Hibs attacker Martin Boyle was taken to hospital with an injury following a duel with defender John Souttar and Philippe Clement’s side wobbled at the start of the second half, looking weary after their battling 2-2 draw with Benfica in the Europa League in Lisbon on Thursday night.

However, Hibernian defender Jordan Obita was sent off in the 68th minute for picking up the second of two yellow cards for a foul on Rabbi Matondo before Nathan Moriah-Welsh was shown a straight red by referee Steven McLean three minutes later for a foul on Lundstram.

Portuguese striker Fabio Silva added a second in the 83rd minute to take Rangers into the last-four draw along with Aberdeen and Celtic, with Championship side Morton hosting Hearts on Monday night.

However, there were more injuries for Clement to deal with Dujon Sterling and his replacement Ross McCausland going off during a pulsating game.

Hibs defender Chris Cadden made his first start of the season after his long-term injury absence with midfielder Nectar Triantis also coming in, as injured Lewis Miller and Dylan Vente dropped out.

Despite their European exertions, the visitors were unchanged with Cyriel Dessers and Silva in attack with the former knocking a cross from left-back Ridvan Yilmaz past the near post after 13 minutes of a frenetic beginning.

Moments later, Jack Butland almost got caught dribbling along his six-yard box by attacker Myziane Maolida, the ball coming off the post after a tackle and ricocheting off the keeper for a corner which came to nothing.

Then Dessers robbed hesitant Obita down the left flank and drove into the box but his angled-drive was blocked by Marshall for a corner which was defended.

Obita compounded his error in the 21st minute when he tripped Sterling inside the penalty area leaving referee McLean with little option but to point to the spot.

Tavernier’s driven penalty was parried out by Marshall but Lundstram was quicker than the Hibs defenders to react and forced the ball over the line from a few yards out.

Marshall then saved a powerful drive from Sterling minutes later before the Light Blues utility player pulled up with what looked like a hamstring problem and had to be replaced by McCausland.

Hibs had their own injury concerns soon afterwards when Boyle and Souttar collided in an aerial duel just outside the Rangers penalty area and the winger, after a lengthy stoppage, was taken from the field on a stretcher, his place taken by Elie Youan.

The visitors had to withstand sustained pressure when the game resumed and after Rangers defender Connor Goldson fouled Emiliano Marcondes 30 yards out, the Hibs forward forced a fine diving save from Butland with his curling free-kick.

Then substitute McCausland limped off to be replaced by Matondo, with Kemar Roofe on for Dessers, before the hosts were reduced to 10 men when Obita, already booked for a foul on Tom Lawrence, saw a second yellow for a tackle on Matondo with Moriah-Welsh following him minutes later after scything down Lundstram.

And it was the former Sheffield United midfielder who set up Silva to rifle in Rangers’ second from 14 yards to settle an eventful cup tie and secure a last-four place at Hampden Park.

It could have been more, substitute Cole McKinnon having the ball in the net in added time only to see the offside flag up.

Philippe Clement insists Rangers came close to a “miracle” win over Benfica in their thrilling Europa League last-16 tie which ended 2-2 in Lisbon.

Midfielder Tom Lawrence gave the Light Blues the lead in the seventh minute of the first leg with a header before Argentina World Cup winner Angel Di Maria levelled with a penalty in added time after VAR intervened to highlight that Gers defender John Souttar had used his arm inside the box.

Dujon Sterling restored the visitors’ lead in added time with his first career goal only for Gers defender Connor Goldson to head into his own goal in the 67th minute and the tie is now set up nicely for next Thursday in Govan.

With a nod to Benfica’s huge budget in comparison to that of Rangers, the Light Blues boss said: “We were really close to making this miracle, the first team ever in the Europa League to win here.

“It is a pity to get a penalty against us like that, it is really an unlucky situation, the ball drops and John doesn’t see it and it drops on his arm. That is really unlucky.

“We were really close, we had two opportunities with Fabio (Silva) and Cyriel (Dessers) to make it 3-1, it would have changed a lot in this game but I am really proud of my team.

“They showed character, personality and solidarity also with the ball we scored two really good goals.

“I am really someone who is demanding but I cannot give more than what they gave today. They gave their all and also, the guys who came in.

“We missed a lot of players in the offensive position so other players had to do the job. I am very happy with Fabio and Dujon.

“We need to continue like this. If we keep this mentality that they have been showing in the last couple of months it could be an amazing season.”

Asked if Rangers now have the advantage in the tie, the Belgian boss said: “It’s only an advantage that it’s at Ibrox. If our fans are on top of it from the first second until the last second then they can give a lot of energy to the team.

“But we stay realistic about the qualities of Benfica. You guys wrote this week about the difference in the transfer budgets and that’s the reality. If we could eliminate this team I think it would be a huge, huge thing.

“I can only ask for my players to give their best and to show that they have shown tonight again on Thursday.”

Clement went on to describe the penalty as “very harsh”, saying: “I have said it already a few times that I don’t agree where the game has gone to with handball situations. I know those are the rules.

“I had more problems with some situations in the last couple of weeks.

“With the rules and how they are now, you can give this penalty. But as somebody who loves football, I have difficulty with those rules.

“And I think all the managers and all the players think the same.

“It is too harsh now that a ball that is clearly not intended to go against your arm, the moment it touches you it’s a penalty.

“Too many games all over the world are  decided in this way with these handballs and these penalties.”