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FLORENCE, Italy (AP) -Rangers beat Fiorentina 4-2 in a penalty shootout Thursday to advance to the UEFA Cup final.
Following 210 minutes of scoreless play over two legs, Spanish forward Nacho Novo converted the decisive penalty after Fabio Liverani and Christian Vieri failed for Fiorentina.
"Personally, I thought European cup finals were way past for me," said Rangers manager Walter Smith, who coached his 66th European match. "I'm delighted for everyone on this team and everyone that has supported us this year."
In the final, Rangers will face Zenit St. Petersburg, which routed Bayern Munich 4-0 earlier to advance 5-1 on aggregate. The championship match is on May 14 at the City of Manchester Stadium in England - south of the Scotland border.
"That was a fantastic result they achieved tonight," Smith said of Zenit. "It shows what a quality opponent they are. We look forward to meeting them in the final."
Rangers has lifted a single European trophy in its history - the Cup Winners' Cup in 1972.
Rangers landed in the UEFA Cup after a third-place finish in its Champions League group.
Until the shootout, the match was a virtual replica of the scoreless draw in the first leg. Fiorentina controlled throughout, while Rangers appeared content to let the match be decided on penalties.
"It's a huge disappointment. Our team deserved to reach the final," Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli said. "We just didn't have the luck on our side. We had so many opportunities and it would have done us good to have been slightly calmer, but it's only natural to be frenetic in a semifinal."
Fiorentina took the match's first 15 shots and finished with a 29-7 advantage.
"You have to give Fiorentina credit," Smith said. "We're a very difficult team to score against. I don't think Fiorentina could have done much more than they did."
In the end, Fiorentina's most experienced player - former Italy forward Vieri - sent his penalty way over the bar.
"I know him well, and he'll be very disappointed," Prandelli said. "But I'm more worried about the injuries to (Marco) Donadel, Liverani and Vieri - who hurt himself on his penalty shot - than their minds."
