Published Sep 6, 2026, 7:15 AM GMT+1

The German giant started the Scottish Premiership match on the bench and was called into action after just eight minutes when Lawrence Shankland was forced off through injury.

Unfortunately, the Gers skipper sustained a hamstring injury in the early stages of the match and had to be withdrawn, with Derek McInnes revealing that they have to wait for a full assessment before they know how long he will be out for.

Shankland's injury does present an opportunity, though, as Naderi and new £9m signing Kevin Kelsy have a chance to land the starting position up front.

Why the number nine position is Naderi's to lose after Motherwell

The former Hansa Rostock centre-forward's performance off the bench against Motherwell suggests that the number nine role is his to lose, at least for now.

Naderi did not take long at all to make his mark on the match after replacing Shankland. Four minutes after the substitution was made, the forward tackled Alex Paulsen in goal for Motherwell before rolling the ball into the back of an empty net.

That goal, born out of determination and work rate from the striker, proved to be the difference between the two sides on the day, as the Light Blues secured a 1-0 victory.

It was not just his goal that caught the eye, though, as the Danny Rohl signing showcased the physical side of his game by winning the majority of his duels on the deck and in the air against the 'Well defenders.

Naderi's impressive performance suggests that he should be the starting number nine, in the short-term at least, but he was not the best player on the pitch.

The best player on the pitch for Rangers against Motherwell

The Gers needed an improved performance after their 2-1 win over Falkirk was a struggle earlier in the week, and one of the players who frustrated in midweek ended up being the best player on the park against Motherwell.

Emmanuel Fernandez was incredibly fortunate not to gift a potential winner to Falkirk when his errant pass across his own box provided their striker with a free shot at goal, as their forward hit his shot straight at Ivor Pandur.

The Nigeria international's use of the ball was much improved against Motherwell on Saturday, avoiding any errors that led to shots or goals for the opposition.

He only lost possession nine times from 69 touches of the ball, showing reliability and composure in possession, and looked far more concentrated than he did in the win on Wednesday night.

Fernandez's biggest strength since he moved from Peterborough United last summer has, ironically, been his strength. He is a physically dominant centre-back who is rarely beaten in duels by opposition attackers.

The 24-year-old star was even better than Naderi in the win over Motherwell because he showcased just how dominant he can be when at his best at the heart of the defence for the Gers, winning an even higher percentage of his duels than the striker did.

Fernandez ended his time on the pitch with nine of his 11 duels won, 86% of his passes completed, and 100% tackles won, without being dribbled past a single time by the opposition.

The Rangers star won five of his six aerial duels and four of his five ground duels in 89 minutes of action for the Scottish giants, completely dominating the Motherwell attackers to help his side to keep a clean sheet.

Whilst there are moments when Fernandez loses concentration and makes mistakes, such as was the case against Falkirk earlier in the week, there are also games where he is almost perfect, such as was the case against Motherwell.

The Nigerian star has the potential to deliver sensational defensive performances when he is at his best, because of his incredible physical attributes, but it is down to him to do it consistently.

If he can cut out the errors and perform week-in-week-out at the level that he showed on Saturday, it will not be long before some of Europe's biggest clubs come knocking on the door.