Ryan Naderi's turnaround at Rangers has drawn comparisons with Mark Hateley's slow start and subsequent heroics at Ibrox, according to former Gers defender Scott Nisbet.
Naderi, a £5 million signing from Hansa Rostock in January, managed just three goals last season as Rangers collapsed in the title race. This season, under manager Derek McInnes, he has scored eight goals, including the winner against Celtic at Parkhead and the decisive strike in Saturday's semi-final win over Aberdeen that booked a Premier Sports Cup final date with Hibs on December 13.
A familiar slow start
Nisbet recalled how Mark Hateley struggled after joining Rangers in 1990, scoring four goals in his first 15 games and facing criticism from fans who blamed him for breaking up the partnership of Ally McCoist and Mo Johnston. But Hateley's famous title-winning double against Aberdeen in May 1991 turned his fortunes, and he left the club six years later with 11 medals.
“I actually played against big Mark when he was at Monaco,” Nisbet told Record Sport. “We played a friendly over there in 1987, Mark and Glenn Hoddle were in their side. Mark, he was some boy. I was just a young lad at the time, I was an up-and-coming player. But going up against Mark was a tough task.
“He was good in the air, he was strong, he was physical, and he was great on the ground as well. He had everything. So when I heard he was coming in to Ibrox, I was absolutely delighted - although a little surprised too. I remember us all asking the big man, ‘So you’ve given up living in Monte Carlo to come to Govan. Are you serious?’ Not many of us would have given up millionaire’s paradise to move here!”
Naderi's graft paying off
Nisbet sees parallels between Hateley's early struggles and Naderi's situation. Last season, Naderi was seen sacrificing his own scoring chances to drag defenders away from strike partner Youssef Chermiti. With Chermiti now injured, along with Lawrence Shankland, Naderi has stepped up.
“Derek's spoken about this. Obviously Shankland is injured, so is Chermiti. This is when you need other guys to step up and take their chance. That's what Ryan’s doing. Ever since he scored that goal against Celtic, he’s been on a fantastic run and got another big goal at Hampden on Saturday,” Nisbet said.
“In the team I played in, we were lucky that we had guys like big Mark, Coisty and Mo who all knew where they had to be to put the ball in the net. Naderi is looking like he’s moving in the right direction too. The more games he plays, the more goals he scores, the more confident he will become and that’s only a good thing for Derek.”
Rangers' unbeaten run
Rangers are now 11 games unbeaten ahead of Saturday's trip to St Mirren, bouncing back from a double European exit. Nisbet, who retired at 25 due to a pelvic injury, is hopeful for the team's prospects.
“I didn’t get to play with Del but I really hopes his team goes all the way. I retired just when Rangers signed Paul Gascoigne. What a replacement! They had to go and find another personality for the dressing room, didn't they? They had to find another nutcase,” Nisbet said.
“Del signed a few months after Gazza but while I wasn’t in the dressing room with him, I've met him a couple of times. He's a lovely lad. I'm so glad he’s got things going now. Those two Celtic games earlier in the season had a make or break feel to them after the way the season started but things are definitely looking up now.
“There's still room for improvement but it definitely feels like we’ve turned the corner and are heading in the right direction. Now we’ve taken care of Aberdeen, hopefully that first trophy comes next month.”
