McInnes 'mortified' as Rangers crash out of Conference League on penalties to Jablonec

Derek McInnes described himself as “embarrassed and mortified” after Rangers were knocked out of the UEFA Conference League play-offs on penalties by Czech side Jablonec at the Stadion Strelnice on Thursday, ending the Scottish club’s hopes of European football this season.

Rangers had arrived in the Czech Republic with a 1-0 advantage from the first leg at Ibrox, but a disjointed display allowed Jablonec midfielder Vakhtang Tchanturishvili to level the tie with a 73rd-minute drive. No further goals in extra time forced a penalty shoot-out, where goalkeeper Ivor Pandur saved from Filip Zorvan but Rangers attackers Findlay Curtis and James Penrice both missed, leaving Jan Chramosta to convert the decisive spot-kick for the hosts.

The defeat compounds a difficult start to the season for McInnes, who also saw Rangers eliminated from the Europa League qualifiers by Polish side Jagiellonia Bialystok. The manager, who arrived from Hearts in the summer and has since signed 12 players with more additions expected, was unsparing in his assessment of the performance.

“First of all, I’m embarrassed with the performance,” McInnes said. “I thought the opposition were better than us in most aspects of the game so we got what we deserved. I’m mortified by the performance. I know you can lose games of football, but we should have enough in the building to take care of that tonight.”

McInnes was also keen to deflect blame away from the two penalty misses, pointing instead to the broader failings that put Rangers in that position. “It shouldn’t have come down to two boys, James Penrice and Findlay Curtis, in tears for missing a penalty kick. It shouldn’t have come down to that.”

Acknowledging the scale of the squad rebuild, McInnes nonetheless refused to use it as a shield. “Yes, there’s been a big turnover of players. Yes, we looked very inexperienced at times. But the responsibility is mine to make sure that we are better than what we served up tonight. And we were miles short, miles short.”

The manager also paid tribute to the travelling Rangers support while lamenting the performance they were forced to witness. “I’m gutted for the supporters because they’ve come here whatever way they can. They don’t always need to see their team perform brilliantly, but they need to see more than what we gave them tonight.”

Rangers now face the prospect of a domestic-only campaign as McInnes attempts to stabilise a squad in significant transition.