Gers draw little~comfort from blank
There was concern for Sporting in the opening minutes when David Weir accidentally stamped on Liedson’s Achilles and the Brazilian left the pitch on a stretcher – but the club’s star man was back in action within two minutes.
With the half-time whistle beckoning, Lee McCulloch had two good chances to hand Rangers the advantage, firstly forcing Patricio to dive low to his right to parry a 35-yard drive before seeing his header deflected inches past the post.
Steven Davis screwed a shot wide from 25 yards at the start of the second half, before the visitors started to impose themselves on the game more.
David Weir was booked on 88 for a foul on Yannick Djalo, meaning he will miss the return leg.