Napoli battle past 10-man Rangers in Ibrox thriller to continue perfect start in Champions League

A penalty from Napoli winger Matteo Politano – his side's third of the night – and late goals from substitutes Giacomo Raspadori and Tanguy Ndombele gave the Italians a crucial 3-0 win against Rangers. The Scottish side were much improved following last week’s tousing by Ajax but remain bottom of Group A and pointless, while Napoli are top with two wins from two.

Ad Both sides made proper chances in an entertaining first half, but lacked the necessary quality and composure to convert them. Champions LeagueKvaratskhelia: Napoli's superstar with 'no weakness' compared to Maradona7 HOURS AGO The second half continued in similar vein until Giovanni Simeone, chasing a through ball, was brought down by James Sands, giving the referee no choice but to award a penalty and brandish a second yellow card.

At which point things got very odd. Allan McGregor saved Piotr Zielinksi’s spot-kick and Politano put in the rebound, only for VAR to discover that he was in the box when the ball was struck.

So the penalty was retaken, again by Zielinski, and McGregor saved again, but then just seven minutes later, Borna Barisic handled inside the box — inadvertently, but with his arm in an unnatural position, and this time Politano stepped up, beating McGregor, just. Rangers did their best to retrieve the situation, but a goal and man down, the effort was always likely to be futile, and Napoli piled on the pain in the closing stages as both Raspadori and Ndombele scored.

As for the Gers, if things weren’t grim enough already, they must now face a double-header with Liverpool. Champions League tables Champions League fixtures/results Champions League top scorers TALKING POINT Allan McGregor made a terrific save from Piotr Zielinski’s penalty, and