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A superb second-half strike from defender Madjid Bougherra saw Rangers earn a 1-1 draw at VfB Stuttgart in the Champions League.

The Scottish champions were played off the park by the hosts in a one-sided first half. The only positive Walter Smith could take was that Pavel Pogrebnyak's 18th minute strike was the only goal his side conceded.

They improved markedly in the second half, however, and pulled level as Bougherra strode forward before rifling a half-volley beyond Jens Lehmann on 76 minutes.

Steven Davis may have won the match in a frenetic final few minutes but saw his low drive shave the post with Lehmann once again beaten.

Stuttgart may have looked like a side short of confidence in their opening Bundesliga fixtures but they well and truly shook that appearance off in a dominant first half which left the Rangers defence chasing shadows.

The movement and energy of the hosts' front two, combined with incisive and attacking wing play posed a host of problems for the Scottish champions, while Alexander Hleb pulled the strings in midfield, cutting in from the left to find space and pull his marker out of position.

The Germans got themselves in behind Rangers' back four as early as the first minute, as Roberto Hilbert tore down the right flank, before pulling back a neat ball into the path of the onrushing Cacau, whose fierce drive was parried by Allan McGregor.

Hleb was next to test the Rangers keeper, forcing him to palm the ball behind from a tight angle after being fed by Pogrebnyak.

A flap from a corner from McGregor did nothing for the confidence of the Rangers fans before the inevitable goal came two minutes later.

The pressure put on the visitors by Stuttgart finally bore fruit, as Sasa Papac's attempted clearance was charged down by Cacau, and the Brazilian raced goalwards before sliding the ball across to Pogrebnyak, who sidefooted home past McGregor at the near post.

Rangers' best moment of the first half came on 23 minutes as Jerome Rothen picked out Steven Naismith on the right hand side of the area, though his nod down for Pedro Mendes bounced awkwardly, preventing the Portuguese from firing away his volley.

That was but a brief foray into the Stuttgart half, however, and Stuttgart poured forward time and again, with David Weir's presence in the Rangers back four being noticeably missed.

The hosts should have been two goals to the good seven minutes before half-time when Papac was caught out again on the left, though this time Cacau opted for goal from the right, driving his shot into the side-netting with his Russian strike partner once again calling for a ball across goal.

Rothen's crossing, which had hitherto proved a big disappointment, yielded Rangers' first real opportunity of the game right after half-time, though Papac headed well wide after stealing in behind Hilbert at the far post.

The Glasgow side were gradually coming back into the game, and had a speculative penalty shout turned down as Kenny Millar tricked his way into the box before being nudged towards ground by Serdar Tasci.

With 20 minutes to go, and Stuttgart's attacking threat having evaporated with the substitution of Hleb, Rangers stepped up their intensity and were level almost instantly.

Bougherra played a neat exchange with Rothen before charging through on goal and driving a rasping right-footed drive past Lehmann.

Cacau, so dangerous in the first half, had by now become a peripheral figure, and the home side failed to test McGregor in the final 10 minutes while Rangers were beginning to find ever more gaps in the Stuttgart defence at the other end.

Davis' low drive ricocheted wide off the post on 90 minutes to deny the visitors the most unlikely of victories, though a defeat would have been overly harsh on the home side.

Michael FitzGerald / Eurosport