Rangers gained Europa League revenge on Progres Niederkorn but without exacting cruel retribution as they edged past their old foes with a goalless draw in Luxembourg.

A truly monumental effort this by Cork City who, two goals down from the first leg, brought a seemingly dead affair roaring back to life by scoring early in both halves in Differdange, only for Progres Niederkorn to grab the consolation goal on the night that meant so much more over the course of the whole tie.

There are any number of ways of expressing the intimidating size of the task facing Cork City in the second-leg of their Europa League First Round tie against Progres Niederkorn here in Luxembourg this evening, but perhaps the most straightforward is to note that a side which hasn’t scored in its last three competitive games must now score three in one outing to secure an outright win or, failing that, two to extend the life of this tie into extra time.

The dream beforehand had been of a box-office clash with Rangers but the reality, on an evening when Cork City repeatedly pressed the self-destruct button, was something more like a nightmare as, after a first half in which the home side conceded two goals and also missed a penalty, the resultant 0-2 defeat gives Progres Niederkorn what looks like full control of this Europa League First Qualifying Round tie ahead of next week’s second leg in Luxembourg.