Celtic v Rangers player ratings as rock lands 9/10, captain falters and boo-boy’s return ends sourly
Rangers have done it again. Seven days after dismantling Celtic 3-0 in the Premier Sports Cup at Ibrox, Derek McInnes’s side travelled to Celtic Park and did the considerably harder job: winning the league fixture, on the road, in front of a hostile sold-out crowd, with no away support of their own to lean on. The final score was only 1-0, but the manner of the win — and the identity of the goalscorer — will feel like exactly the kind of statement Rangers have been building toward since a rocky start to McInnes’s reign.
Ryan Naderi settled it on 33 minutes, and the goal itself told its own story about where the balance of the game lay. Kim Min-su drove at the Celtic defence and unleashed a shot from distance that Viljami Sinisalo could only parry back into the danger area rather than away from goal — exactly the kind of half-save that punishes a goalkeeper when there’s a predator lurking, and Naderi reacted quickest of anyone in the box to bundle the rebound home. It was Rangers’ second Old Firm goal of the season from almost an identical pattern of quick reactions and sharp movement in the box, and it underlined again just how much of a weapon Naderi has become for Rangers since establishing himself as first-choice up front.
The rest of the afternoon followed a familiar script for anyone who’d watched last weekend’s cup tie. Rangers created the better chances throughout, pressed with intensity, and generally looked the more dangerous side in the final third, while Celtic struggled to find any consistent rhythm going forward. The clearest illustration of Rangers’ dominance came just after the hour mark, when Olwethu Makhanya thought he’d doubled the lead, only for the goal to be chalked off for handball in the build-up — a decision that will have frustrated Rangers given how comprehensively they were on top of the game by that stage, but one that did little to change the eventual outcome.
Celtic’s best moments were rare and largely came from set pieces or moments of individual quality rather than sustained pressure. Colby Donovan had arguably their clearest opportunity with a 46th-minute header that Ivor Pandur clawed away, while Kieran Tierney, pushed into a more advanced role, hit the crossbar early on before fading badly as the game progressed. Beyond those flashes, Celtic never really threatened to force an equaliser, and Rangers saw the game out with the kind of composure that has become increasingly characteristic of this McInnes side.
The result leaves Rangers second in the table but now just two points behind Celtic, having closed what could have been a much larger gap through a run of results that has completely transformed the mood around Ibrox. It’s worth remembering how differently this season began for McInnes: he failed to win either of his opening two league matches in charge, and Rangers suffered early European exits against Jagiellonia Białystok and, on penalties, Jablonec. From that low point, Rangers have now strung together a run that includes this second successive Old Firm win within the space of a week — a feat matched only twice before in the fixture’s long history, in 1960 and 1998 — and has McInnes matching a record previously set by Graeme Souness by winning his first two Old Firm derbies in charge.
For Celtic and Martin O’Neill, the picture could hardly be more different. This was Celtic’s first league defeat of the campaign, following a perfect six-from-six start, but it arrived as the third poor result in the space of a single week, following last weekend’s cup defeat and a midweek Europa League loss to Ferencvaros. The domestic season now shuts down for three weeks with the international break, giving O’Neill an enforced pause to regroup — but also three weeks in which the growing questions about his tactical approach and the club’s summer transfer business, already voiced by supporters’ groups and outside analysts alike, will have plenty of time to build
Between the posts, Viljami Sinisalo was handed a difficult afternoon and finished with a 5, the harshest mark reserved for his role in the goal itself — steady enough in general play, but a fair question remains over whether he should have parried Kim Min-su’s shot away from danger rather than back into a crowded box.
In defence, the concerns started from a base that was not uniformly bad. Colby Donovan, deployed defensively and tested repeatedly by Djeidi Gassama’s pace down the flank, still managed a 6, in part thanks to that headed chance that represented Celtic’s best moment of the entire match. Cameron Carter-Vickers, similarly rated a 6, put in one of Celtic’s better individual performances, producing a crucial block to deny Kelsy a clear sight of goal and generally standing up well to a physically imposing Rangers front line. Auston Trusty also picked up a 6, robust for the most part defensively, though skinned once by Gassama in a move that nearly resulted in a Rangers goal.
The rating dropped sharply for Liam Scales, shifted to left-back and handed a 4 for a display that lacked the composure needed to give Celtic any real attacking outlet down that side, with the ratings noting he couldn’t adequately back up Tierney further forward. That lack of balance on the left flank was one of several structural issues that hampered Celtic’s ability to build sustained pressure.
In midfield, the story was similarly difficult. Callum McGregor, Celtic’s captain, was handed a 4 and described as producing his poorest run of form in a long time — overpowered in the middle of the park, occasionally slack in possession, and picking up a booking in what was judged a genuine contributing factor to the team’s overall malaise on the day. Mika Baur, whose challenge on Naderi the previous week had triggered a significant SFA row, was rated 5, described as lively in the opening period but unable to exert any real influence on the game as it wore on.
Further forward, Kieran Tierney’s afternoon summed up Celtic’s overall trajectory: pushed into a more advanced, winger-style role, he started the game brightly and struck the crossbar with a shot on 30 minutes, but his level steadily dropped from there, and he was withdrawn on 71 minutes having rated only a 5 overall. Luke McCowan, a surprise inclusion in the starting eleven, endured a torrid time and picked up the harshest mark of the day among starters, a 3, for a wasteful, frustrating performance that saw him hooked at half-time in favour of Hogh. Benjamin Nygren fared little better with a 4, spending another big occasion largely on the periphery of the action and visibly venting his frustration when substituted on 62 minutes. Camilo Duran, asked to lead the line, rated a 5, doing battle early with Fernandez but starved of the service that might have allowed him to make a bigger impact, fading as the match wore on before being withdrawn after 71 minutes
Celtic’s bench offered little in the way of a spark. Kasper Hogh came on at half-time and, in the ratings’ own words, offered no threat whatsoever — a verdict extended equally to Haissem Hassan, James Forrest and Sebastien Tounekti, with Shim Mheuka also getting some minutes without materially altering the pattern of the
At the other end, Rangers’ afternoon was defined by control and composure, and the individual ratings reflected a team that dominated without needing to be spectacular. Ivor Pandur was largely a spectator, called into serious action only once — a brilliant save to deny Donovan at the start of the second half — and was rewarded with a 7 for what was otherwise a quiet away derby outing.
In defence, Dujon Sterling continued his rapid rise up the pecking order with an 8, described as increasingly one of the first names on the Rangers team sheet after another impressive display on the right side of the backline, winning the vast majority of his individual duels and looking entirely unfazed by the occasion. Emmanuel Fernandez, booked inside four minutes for pulling back Duran and fortunate to avoid a second yellow for a subsequent foul on McGregor, still managed to ride out that early period of vulnerability and settled into a performance worth a 7, helping keep Celtic largely at arm’s length for the remainder of the game.
The standout individual performance of the entire match, though, belonged to Olwethu Makhanya, who picked up a remarkable 9 — described simply as “a rock.” The South African defender strolled through the fixture, was never flustered whether on the ball or in one-on-one situations, and very nearly capped a near-perfect display with a goal of his own, only to see the effort chalked off for handball in the build-up. It continues what’s already been one of the most eye-catching individual stories of Rangers’ season, with Makhanya having settled into Scottish football and the demands of the Old Firm derby with startling ease for a player who arrived from MLS with no prior European experience.
Elsewhere, James Penrice was again deployed in a hybrid role, pushed into midfield to lock onto Celtic’s more progressive players, and earned a 7 for a combative shift that saw him empty the tank before being replaced by Godfrey. Nicolas Raskin, drawing on his growing experience of these occasions, was rated 7 for a performance built on being up for the physical and mental fight throughout the ninety minutes. Dan Neil, so influential with a brace in last weekend’s cup win, was slightly more understated this time out but still earned a 7 for keeping Rangers’ midfield ticking over in what was judged an assured captain’s display.
In the wide areas, Kim Min-su was a constant threat and rated 7, with his shot from distance directly leading to Naderi’s opener; he repeatedly found pockets of space between the lines and was willing to drive directly at Celtic’s defenders throughout. Djeidi Gassama, on the opposite flank, also earned a 7 for a disciplined display that balanced attacking intent with the defensive responsibilities his role demanded, and was unlucky not to add a goal of his own after striking the post, before making way for Curtis.
Up top, the headline story belonged to Ryan Naderi, rated 8 for reacting sharpest to net the winner and being a persistent menace throughout the afternoon — the only mild criticism being that he might have doubled his tally with a second-half header that drifted wide when a place on target could easily have settled the game beyond doubt. Naderi’s continued excellent form comes against the backdrop of the ankle injury sustained in last week’s cup tie and the resulting SFA complaint from Rangers over the Baur challenge, making his performance here all the more significant given the uncertainty that had surrounded his fitness in the build-up. Kevin Kelsy, meanwhile, earned a 7 for what was described as more grunt than guile — a tireless shift running the channels all afternoon, capped by a blocked strike that Carter-Vickers did well to stop from testing Sinisalo.
Rangers’ bench, much like their starting eleven, delivered exactly what was needed. McInnes was praised for using his substitutes well to both solidify Rangers’ position and refresh legs where needed, with Ben Godfrey, Cammy Devlin, Tochi Chukwuani, Findlay Curtis and Badredine Bouanani all introduced at various stages to help see out the win.
For Celtic, three defeats in the space of a week represents a genuine crisis moment, and the international break arrives at a difficult time — offering O’Neill space to regroup, but also three weeks in which the mounting external criticism of the club’s boardroom and recruitment strategy will have room to keep building before Celtic play again. For Rangers, the picture is about as positive as it could be: a settled, in-form squad, an increasingly feared defensive pairing in Fernandez and Makhanya, a captain in Dan Neil and a midfield partner in Raskin who look increasingly assured together, and a striker in Naderi delivering match-winning contributions week after week despite the swirling off-field noise around his fitness and the ongoing SFA row.
When the Premiership resumes after the international break, Rangers will do so just two points off top spot, with genuine belief that this is now a title race rather than a procession — a remarkable turnaround from where things stood only a matter of weeks ago.
