Schalke 1-0 Rangers

Jul 20 2008 Gavin Berry At Veltins Arena

THE gulf in spending power between Rangers and Europe's elite was clear to see as Schalke saw off Walter Smith's troops. It might be the start of a new campaign but it was an all too familiar sight as Gers battled against a side with significantly more cash to splash.

Veteran Serbian defender Mladen Krstajic headed the winner in a dull match that had echoes of many European games involving Rangers last term.

However, the Ibrox side almost grabbed an equaliser late on when new signing Andrius Velicka hit the post with a header.

Smith got his team to punch above their weight in Europe last term as they beat Stuttgart, Lyon, Werder Bremen and Fiorentina during a memorable run.

But the UEFA Cup Final proved a bridge too far as cash-rich Zenit St Petersburg beat them.

And it looks like being a similar story this season.

Schalke are also in the Champions League qualifiers but have more money to spend than Gers as they try to book a place at the top table.

The home fans turned out to see new signing Jefferson Farfan who cost £9million from PSV Eindhoven - three times more than Smith's most expensive summer capture Kyle Lafferty.

Schalke also spent big on £5m Dutch Euro 2008 star Orlando Engelaar while Gers were forced to scrape around.

Smith has shown he can bridge the gap with tactics and it looks like he'll stick with his trusted 4-1-4-1 formation in Europe.

Jean-Claude Darcheville played through the middle here with Kenny Miller - jeered again by a small section of the support - and Nacho Novo on the flanks.

The Gers gaffer defended the set-up yesterday but admitted he wants to see his side improve how they play the system.

He said: "There was a lot made of the formation last season. And if you play one striker you need to be good enough to get the rest of your team closer to him.

"In a lot of games last season we didn't do that. We might not vary greatly from it but I'd hope we'd be in a better position to get up and support that striker.

"Top sides play that formation but they were better than we were in a lot of matches last season in terms of possession. That's an aspect we need to improve on."

Smith's tactics make Rangers difficult to break down and Schalke would have known all about that having seen Stuttgart and Bremen lose at Ibrox.

After wins over lower-league sides this was the biggest test of Gers' week-long stay on the Dutch-German border.

And it was vital preparation for their first Champions League qualifier on July 30.

Christian Dailly was handed the holding midfield role and Kirk Broadfoot moved into the centre of defence alongside stand-in skipper Davie Weir - with Carlos Cuellar still nursing a calf problem.

Schalke star Peter Lovenkrands missed out on the chance to face his old club through injury.

The Germans still fielded a strong side with Farfan the main attraction while Engelaar started on the bench. But there was little to excite the fans early on.

The match was played at a typical friendly pace and Gerald Asamoah's low shot that flew wide was about as good as it got.

The fact a Mexican wave was under way with just 17 minutes on the clock told you everything about the lack of action.

Fabian Ernst was next to try his luck with a long-range effort but Neil Alexander collected it easily before Albert Streit saw an effort blocked by Broadfoot.

However, the Ibrox defender was not so lucky on the half hour when Schalke broke the deadlock with a well-worked corner.

Farfan swung the ball in from the left and Krstajic got in front of Broadfoot to direct a header in off the underside of the bar.

Miller then showed his lightning pace to get in behind the Schalke defence and create an opening out of nothing. But Ernst denied him a first goal since returning to Ibrox with a fantastic tackle.

At the other end Farfan went close to adding a second with a low shot following a neat one-two with the lively Asamoah but Weir deflected the ball wide.

Gers had to wait until five minutes from the end for their best chance of an equaliser.

Darcheville crossed into the box and sub Velicka was denied his first goal for the club when his header hit the inside of the post.

After the glamour of the Veltins Arena it's Clyde next up for Gers at Broadwood on Tuesday.

And the most important thing at this stage of pre-season for Smith is fine tuning his team for that crunch Euro qualifier.

team sheet

SCHALKE: Schober, Kobiashvili, Bordon, Streit, Ernst, Jones, Asamoah, Farfan, Rafinha, Krstajic, Pander. Subs: Fahrmann, Varela, Rakitic, Ze Roberto, Grossmuller, Howedes, Zambrano, Sanchez, Kenia, Engelaar.

RANGERS: Alexander, Whittaker, Broadfoot, Weir, Papac, Dailly, Novo, McCulloch, Thomson, Miller, Darcheville. Subs: Smith, Webster, Adam, Cousin, Furman, Velicka, Fleck.