Substitute Nacho Novo's last minute winner broke the deadlock to give Rangers a slight advantage in their Champions League final qualifying round tie against Red Star Belgrade.

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The fiercely competed first leg match seemed destined to end in a goalless stalemate until the Spaniard ran on to a flicked-on long ball to fire into the far corner in the 90th minute.

Ibrox heaved a collective sigh of relief, partly because their side struggled to win this match and partly because they know how useful a one-goal cushion will be for the return leg in Belgrade.

With an estimated £10 million prize for the club that progresses into the Champions League proper, it was clear from the outset that both sides wanted to win, and sometimes that commitment threatened to boil over.

A tough encounter saw seven Red Star players booked, setting the tone for the second leg in a fortnight at the intimidating Marakana in the Serbian capital.

Indeed, an all-out brawl was only avoided by referee Martin Hansson's decision to blow for half time and send the players to the dressing rooms after Nenad Milijas had won no friends in Glasgow for his part in an altercation with Carlos Cuellar, both of whom should have gone into the book for touching heads.

Indeed throughout the game, Red Star proved their physical credentials with a typically tough display and the referee's decision to show so many yellow cards to the Serbian side was entirely justified.

Rangers were no less committed in the tackle, but more often than not Walter Smith's side lacked that bit of invention to unlock the well-disciplined Red Star back line.

The introduction of Novo and Daniel Cousin with 25 minutes remaining offered some hope for the hosts, the latter blazing one effort just over the bar soon after his introduction.

Skipper Barry Ferguson saw a second half header land comfortably in the arms of keeper Ivan Randjelovic, as did Lee McCulloch, before hitting the side netting from a tight angle as time ran down, but those half chances aside, Rangers largely failed to threaten the visitors' goal.

Jean-Claude Darcheville started the game as a lone striker, with DaMarcus Beasley and Lee McCulloch providing width. And until his withdrawal for Cousin, the Frenchman found it difficult to find a way through, more often than not being frustrated by the sight of a raised linesman's flag.

Red Star were equally ineffectual at breaking down their opponent's defence, although they came far closer than Rangers to scoring.

The 40th minute chance was created - and very nearly brilliantly executed - by the impressive Filip Djordjevic.

Up until that point, Red Star had been limited to shooting from distance - without success - but when Djordjevic used his strength to turn Cuellar and fire a dipping volley goalwards, they came within inches of taking the lead. His first time strike ended up on top of Allan McGregor's net.

Rangers now take their goal advantage to Belgrade, where another clean sheet will be enough to see them through to the lucrative latter stages of this season's tournament.