Kelly the hero as 10-man Rangers keep Bilbao at bay | OneFootball

Liam Kelly emerged as Rangers’ Europa League saviour, stopping a penalty to secure a crucial 0-0 draw against Athletic Club in the opening leg of their quarter-final clash.

Following a string of costly mistakes in recent weeks, Jack Butland was left out of the starting XI, and Kelly proved his worth in his first appearance since their Scottish Cup elimination.

Rangers’ European fortune seemed to be fading when Robin Propper received a red card early in the match for denying Inaki Williams a clear scoring opportunity.

Despite being a man down, Rangers held their ground, with Kelly producing two outstanding stops just before the interval to keep their European campaign alive amid a rough patch in domestic form.

Alex Berenguer appeared to have broken the deadlock shortly after being subbed on, but the goal was chalked off for offside. VAR instead awarded a penalty after spotting a handball by Dujon Sterling.

Berenguer took the resulting spot-kick, aiming straight down the centre, only for the Scotland keeper to block it with his legs — sparking a deafening roar from the Ibrox faithful.

The two teams will face off once more in Bilbao on April 17, with a semi-final berth on the line.