THIS was the football equivalent of euthanasia, a match that could have been sponsored by Dignitas.

If Rangers’ meek capitulation to VfB Stuttgart on Tuesday night was painful for their supporters to endure, then at least it also had the additional effect of finally putting them out of their misery for another year at least.

There will be no more European matches at Ibrox this season, no more nights for their fans to watch fearfully through the cracks of their fingers. Had Rangers somehow scraped through to the last 16 of the Champions League or the latter stages of the Europa League, you wonder how many would have been willing to pay upwards of £40 to watch their side continue to struggle against teams from the same mould as Stuttgart and Unirea Urziceni who could hardly be described as part of the football elite.

How they must wish for a return to the days when Rangers were dull but dogged in the European arena.

So, where did it all go 
wrong this time around?

How long have you got? Rangers failed to take the precious few chances they did create in their three home matches, while looking vulnerable any time they were forced to defend.

Those in denial will point towards the penalty not awarded against Sevilla, the one missed against Unirea, and Kris Boyd’s headed chance against Stuttgart, but in truth those are mere footnotes in the story of an otherwise dismal campaign. Rangers would surely have still 
lost all of those matches even if all three of those chances had resulted in goals.

The fact that every home game ended with the opposition playing shooty-in on the Rangers goal tells its own story.

Why has the home 
FORM been so poor?

Walter Smith conceded after the Stuttgart match that his side cannot cope with the pressures that come from playing in front of their own fans, matches where they are expected to dominate possession and push the opposition on to the back foot.

This was a revealing comment in many ways. Firstly, it was an unequivocal admission from the manager that his players are not good enough to play expansive football at this level.

Secondly, it suggested a mental frailty, a lack of self-confidence throughout the squad. Draw up a list of Rangers players comfortable with the ball at their feet and capable of holding on to it for any length of time and you wouldn’t need to use much ink.

Smith remarked recently that Ibrox is an unforgiving arena, a place where the fans do not hold back with their disapproval. That surely only added to the pressure placed upon the players’ shoulders.

And yet on the road they have played well. Why the disparity?

Away from home there is not the same need for Rangers to dominate. They did well to soak up early pressure in Stuttgart before returning fire when the Germans started to wilt.

They were similarly cagey in Romania, sneaking forward whenever the occasion allowed 
it and were unfortunate not to win that match. It was the sort of tactic that stood them in good stead on the run to the UEFA Cup final 
in 2008.

So why did Rangers not just play like that at home?

Smith was stung by the criticism of his negative tactics in that 2007/08 campaign, despite the clear success it brought. Leo Messi’s ‘anti-football’ jibe clearly stuck in the craw. Smith brought in players like Pedro Mendes and Steven Davis in a bid to appease the critics and looked to add a dash of entertainment to complement the dogged resilience. Against better-organised and more talented sides, though, Rangers have been unable to commit players to attack while similarly keeping it tight at the back. Ten goals conceded in three home matches is instructive.

What about Smith?

He looked like a man who had won the lottery then lost his ticket in the immediate aftermath of the Stuttgart match.

No doubt he felt partly culpable for the defeat. He had tried a new 3-4-3 formation that had failed to click, moved players about the pitch to little avail, and overseen Rangers’ worst ever set of results at home in the Champions League. No wonder he was a little sheepish. But it was also possible to detect an air of resignation enveloping Smith, as if he has had his fill of operating in ever decreasing circles.

There is no sign of a buyer for the club, nor of a new contract for him or his coaching staff. Should he stay on until the end of the season, it seems almost inevitable that more players will be sold in January.

Then there is the saga with Madjid Bougherra and the Algerian’s desire to go a-wandering while on international duty. Smith will be 62 in February and surely does not need any further erosion of his reputation as one of Rangers’ most successful managers.

Where next for Rangers then?

Seville, for the final group match of the campaign on December 9. The bad news for them is that the Spaniards need a result to ensure they top Group G and so will not be of a mood to take their foot off the gas. Rangers could do worse than throwing in a few more kids and giving them some precious Champions League experience.

After that?

Well, there will be no more European football until the start of next season and even Nostradamus would struggle to predict what shape Rangers will be in by then, both on and off the field. In the meantime, all they can do is continue to advance their cause on the three domestic fronts. In stark contrast to their European struggles, Rangers are undefeated domestically since March. That probably says more about the rest of Scottish football than it does its current champions.