It was obvious why Martin was unhappy. In Plzen, Rangers conceded 27 shots, a staggering 21 of them coming from inside their penalty area.
As a result, the Czech side ended with an expected goals rating of 3.31, with Butland making eight saves, with the one to deny Prince Adu truly world class.
Given Rangers’ impressive first-leg performance, a one-off poor display with a comfortable 3-0 aggregate lead could be forgiven given the end result.
But early in the season, it has been a pattern. Rangers have conceded 97 shots in their six games so far, an average of 16 per game.
Had Plzen, Panithinaikos, Motherwell, or even Dundee been more clinical then it could easily be a different story in this nascent campaign.
“Plzen had four 100% chances and took one of them – and they all came from Rangers’ mistakes,” former Rangers midfielder Ian McCall said on Sportsound.
“They were shoddy and shabby, but the name of the game is getting into the next round.
“There’s an awful lot of money at stake, and they’ll have a chance. But they’ll need to defend a lot better in terms of not giving the ball away in dangerous areas.”
