Dynamo hit Partizan for SIX as Rangers sent ominous Champions League warning with stunning rout

Dynamo Kyiv players refused to shake hands with their Partizan opponents - before thumping them 6-2 to almost certainly set up a Champions League qualifier with Rangers next month.

Gers found out this week it will be either the runners-up from Ukraine or Serbia as their first hurdle to clear in their quest to reach the newly-introduced league stage in September. It was a draw Philippe Clement would have taken but neither is a gimmie - particularly not Dynamo who were heavily fancied to advance and set up a rematch from their famous tie in 1987.

The pre-match buildup to this one was dominated by a geo-political storm, with Dynamo boss Oleksandr Shovkovskyi angrily announcing they would not shake hands with their opponents due to their involvement in a pre-season friendly tournament in Moscow. And the football match itself - taking place in Poland with Dynamo unable to play their 'home' Champions League matches in Ukraine amid the ongoing Russian invasion - was a barnstormer that Gers will have been watching closely.

It was the Serbians who posed the early threat and took the lead through a penalty from Brazilian striker Saldanha. But, in threatening an upset, they had simply poked the proverbial bear.

A stunning three-goal rush from Dynamo came in response before half-time and and Vladyslav Kabayev made it 4-1 just after the interval. Partizan's danger man Saldanha pulled one back, but favourites Dynamo were just too good. Centre-back Denys Popov soon headed in to make it five, before half-time sub Oleksandr Pikalyonok fired in a sixth in stoppage time.

If Dynamo avoid a heinous collapse in Belgrade next week, then they will travel to Rangers' temporary home of Hampden on Tuesday August 6, before a decider in either