Butland has come in for criticism this season, with several high-profile mistakes dotted throughout Rangers’ difficult domestic campaign.
A far cry from his debut season at the club, where his consistently excellent form led to him being linked with a return to the England squad, even if that never transpired.
He stood up when it counted against Fenerbahce, though, saving efforts from Dusan Tadic and Fred in the shootout before Mert Hakan Yandas missed the target completely.
“It’s not tough,” he said. “When you play in this place with everything that’s on the line, it’s your nature.
“We are something special. I wanted to put something up for the guys, I wanted to get it done. You can’t top this feeling.
“The boys dug deep and this is the reward you get – it’s what the fans deserve. We could have been more clinical, but, boy, we deserved this.”
Former Rangers midfielder Andy Halliday says Butland has more than atoned for previous errors.
“Jack Butland is the hero,” he said on Sportsound. “We talked about his lack of form this season, compared to last. All of that is firmly out the window.”
And Tavernier revealed post-match that there were no special preparations for the possibility of a shootout.
“We probably did it the hard way, but these are the special nights in European football, which you can’t replace,” he told TNT Sports.
“We didn’t actually practice [penalties] this week. Maybe that helped.”
