Rangers fail to perform like champions.

in the Nikos Goumas Stadium last night, but the light is fading and a

second successive season locked outside the only real game in Europe,

the Champions' League, looms.

A thoroughly deserved AEK Athens triumph in the first leg of their

European Cup preliminary-round tie against the Scottish champions will

demand nothing short of a positive and striking response at Ibrox in a

fortnight's time if Walter Smith's players are to bask again in the

glory of football at the top.

''It will be a difficult task now,'' said Smith, who had felt his team

were weathering the first-half storm until Dimitrios Saravakos scored

after four minutes of injury time.

''Probably losing a goal at that time was a psychological blow and

their second goal gave them another lift when I thought the game had

settled down with us looking as though we might impose ourselves.''

Andy Goram said that no-one should discount Rangers, pointing out that

they have been in similar dire positions in the past. ''Remember, we

were two down to Marseille and we came back from that. The Greeks are a

very good team and we shouldn't try to take anything away from them, but

you know how our lads are when faced with a challenge.''

But, on last night's evidence, it is not easy to look and see who will

provide the spark of creativity which will be required to repair the

damage done in the heat of Athens. Rangers, without wishing to be

excessively cruel, did not look the part at all and struggled throughout

to cope with the Greek champions, who played some excellent football.

Had it not been for Goram, who demonstrated why he is the country's

top keeper, Rangers would have lost much more heavily, but a 2-0 defeat

may already have sealed their fate so far as European football is

concerned for another season. Watching them fail to cope with their own

strategy and the lively play of their opponents offered little hope of a

powerful enough comeback in the return leg.

Too many of Smith's players seemed unaware of precisely the jobs they

had been given and they lacked the flair required at this level. They

were especially bereft of ideas in midfield and the only player who

seemed capable of adding a creative touch, Brian Laudrup, did not see

enough of the ball.

The captain, Richard Gough, played well, although he allowed Saravakos

to escape when the second goal was scored. Saravakos, in fact, scored

both goals and endeared himself to the volatile AEK Athens fans in only

his first competitive game for the club. Saravakos arrived as a summer

signing from Panathinaikos, who are AEK's traditional rivals, and the

fans almost to a man were against the winger's arrival.

The 33-year-old, who has a record 77 international caps, was regarded

as being past his best and the AEK fans also felt a sense of betrayal

when their manager, Dusan Bajadic, turned to Panathinaikos in an attempt

to strengthen his own team. Saravakos' goals against Rangers turned his

many critics to acolytes, but neither he nor they may fully realise the

damage which might have been done to Scotland's most powerful club.

Rangers have been gearing themselves for an assault on the Champions'

League and their heavy spending, especially on Laudrup and Basile Boli,

who missed last night's match because of suspension, means they need the

millions of pounds which each club in the European Cup league sections

receives.

The Ibrox side lined up with a five-man defensive line, which had Neil

Murray and David Robertson as the right and left full-backs

respectively. Steven Pressley, Richard Gough, and Gary Stevens were

patrolling the centre of this barrier with the idea that Murray and

Robertson would surge into midfield at the appropriate time.

It soon transpired that good intentions in football are not always

able to be put into practice and Rangers had a torrid time, falling

behind before they could escape indoors at half-time.

Saravakos, who had been causing Rangers problems from the beginning,

deserved something for his efforts and four minutes into injury time at

the end of the first half his moment arrived. Tsartas picked up the ball

in midfield, drifted away from a tackle, and played the ball to

Saravakos on the right-hand side of Rangers' penalty box. He looked up

and directed a shot towards Goram's top right-hand corner, and the AEK

support went wild.

With 70 minutes gone the Greeks engineered another breakthrough. A

high ball was played out of defence and deep into Rangers territory and

although Gough lost track of its flight path, Saravakos kept his eye on

the ball, which he quickly brought under control.

Although Goram parried the shot, the AEK player pounced on the rebound

and thumped the ball into the roof of the net.

The Ibrox side took off Durie in 77 minutes and sent on Ian Durrant,

but the Greeks continued to press until the end and were entitled to

consider themselves unfortunate to win only 2-0.

Long after the players had left the pitch the band of Rangers

suporters -- reckoned to be around 700-strong -- stood in stunned

silence. They were alone on the terracings, kept indoors by the riot

police who had tried -- but failed -- to protect them from the abuse and

flares hurled their way throughout the match.

These travellers had suffered and were given nothing in return by

their team. Indeed, the fans could not believe that their team could

look so inept.

AEK ATHENS -- Atmatsidis, Papadopoulos, Kassapis, Manolas,

Sabanantzovic, Vlachos, Saravakos, Savevski, Ketsbaia, Tsartas, Kostis.

Substitutes -- Dimitriadis, Vaios Karagiannis, Borbokis, Karagiannis,

Agorogiannis.

RANGERS -- Goram, Stevens, Robertson, Gough, Pressley, McCall,

Laudrup, Ferguson, Durie, Hateley, Murray. Substitutes -- Brown,

Maxwell, McPherson, McCoist, Durrant.

Referee -- Peter Mikkelsen (Denmark).