Rangers secured their place in the Europa League knockout round play-offs after Alfredo Morelos’ double got the Giovanni van Bronckhorst era up and running with a 2-0 victory against Sparta Prague at Ibrox.

With Van Bronckhorst watching on from the dugout for the first time, the hosts made an excellent start and took the lead in the 15th minute through Morelos’ first-time strike.

The visitors gifted Morelos his second of the game straight after the restart but Rangers missed a host of chances to put the game out of sight in the second half.

Van Bronckhorst needed a spectacular double save from his former Ibrox team-mate, Allan McGregor, to maintain Rangers’ two-goal lead and they held on to secure a win that gets the Dutchman’s reign off to a winning start.

The victory ensures Rangers, who will face a team who finished third in their Champions League group when the Europa League restarts in the new year, moved out of sight of Brondby ahead of their final game against Group A winners Lyon – and their 2-1 aggregate score over Sparta means the Czech side cannot overturn a three-point deficit.