Rangers Edge Motherwell with Naderi's Crucial Goal

Ryan Naderi needed only one mistake. Rangers needed only one goal.

The substitute pounced on a calamitous mix-up at the back to sink Motherwell 1-0 at Ibrox and haul Derek McInnes’ side up to second in the Scottish Premiership.

McInnes in the stands, Shankland in trouble

McInnes, serving the second game of a two-match touchline ban for comments made last season while at Hearts, watched from high in the stand. What he saw in the opening minutes would have churned the stomach.

Motherwell started sharper, braver on the ball, and Rangers’ captain Lawrence Shankland lasted barely 10 minutes before pulling up with what looked like a hamstring problem. He limped off, head down, and the mood around Ibrox dipped with him.

McInnes later admitted it “looks like a significant hamstring injury” and possibly a recurrence of the issue Shankland suffered at Hearts. For a striker who had been thriving with the extra attacking thrust around him, it felt like a major blow.

Then the game flipped.

Naderi punishes Paulsen’s rush of blood

On came Ryan Naderi, and within minutes he turned the afternoon on its head.

A routine passage of play at the back for Motherwell unravelled in slow motion. A couple of loose touches from the centre-backs saw the ball knocked back towards goalkeeper Alex Paulsen. Instead of clearing his lines, Paulsen tried to be clever, attempting to dribble past the onrushing Naderi on the edge of his box.

It was a disastrous choice. Naderi read it, nicked the ball cleanly, and suddenly had an empty net in front of him. He rolled it home with ease. He will rarely score an easier goal; he may not score a more important one this season.

From the technical area, McInnes would have been pacing. From the stand, he could only clench his fists.

Pandur stands tall as Motherwell threaten

The early lead did not bring comfort. Motherwell responded with purpose and forced Rangers to lean heavily on goalkeeper Ivor Pandur.

Regan Charles-Cook drew the first big save, Pandur reacting sharply to beat away his effort. Soon after, an excellent Motherwell counter carved Rangers open, with Alex Lowry driving into space. Pandur again came to the rescue, getting down low to his right to block.

Motherwell had Rangers wobbling. The home crowd sensed it. The visitors, though, lacked the ruthlessness to make it count.

Penalty drama and Minsu’s nightmare

The pressure finally brought a golden chance.

Minsu Kim, who would find himself at the heart of Motherwell’s story, first wasted a clear opportunity when he headed straight at Pandur from a promising position.

Moments later, Djeidi Gassama burst into the box to meet a Dan Neil cross and was clattered by Tom Sparrow. The challenge was clumsy, the decision straightforward. Penalty.

With regular taker Shankland already off injured, the responsibility fell to Minsu. He placed the ball, took his run-up, and dragged the spot-kick wide. Pandur guessed, but he didn’t need to move. The ball never troubled the target.

It felt like a turning point. Motherwell had Rangers where they wanted them and let them off the hook.

Second-half siege, same result

Motherwell refused to go quietly after the break. Minsu again found space and this time forced Paulsen into a strong save, only for the rebound to cannon off the post. On another day he walks away with a brace. On this one, he left with regret.

Alfred Johansson turned to his bench, withdrawing Minsu and Gassama and introducing Daisuke Yokota. Rangers, meanwhile, handed a debut to Kevin Kelsy as McInnes looked for fresh energy to kill the contest.

Rangers created enough to do exactly that.

Nico Raskin saw a goal-bound effort hooked off the line with Paulsen beaten. Yokota then sliced horribly wide with the goal gaping, a glaring miss that drew groans around Ibrox. Kelsy joined the list of nearly men, leaning back and firing over from a great position when a composed finish would have sealed a debut goal.

McInnes later called it “a very strong performance” and admitted his frustration that Rangers did not add to their lead. The numbers and chances backed him up. The scoreline did not.

Managers’ verdicts

Johansson, honest as ever, refused to pin anything on Paulsen despite the decisive error.

“Congratulations to Rangers; they were the better team, they deserved the three points today,” he said. “We didn’t play to our best today and they got the game they wanted.”

He pointed instead to the missed opportunities and the flashes of promise.

“When I watch the video and when I show the video to my players they will see the potential. We are on a bad day creating a couple of chances, which could’ve made a big difference. Rangers will feel they should have at least two more and we stayed in the game so that’s a positive.”

McInnes, while pleased with the control and the defensive discipline against what he called “a very good Motherwell team”, could not hide his concern over Shankland.

“He’s a bit down about things and he might be out for a while,” the Rangers manager said, before turning to the players who stepped up. “Kelsy was good on his debut and Naderi got his goal; we’ve got quality to lean on.”

A narrow win, a bigger question

Rangers leave with the points, a clean sheet, and second place in the table. They also leave with their talismanic striker facing a potentially lengthy spell out and a reminder of how thin the margins can be at the top.

If this is the start of a sustained push, it will be built on exactly this kind of performance: gritty, controlled, and unforgiving of mistakes. The question now is whether McInnes’ supporting cast can keep delivering while Shankland watches from the treatment room.