How Fernandez rise makes him a Rangers role model

Danny Rohl says Emmanuel Fernandez is a "role model" for Rangers' player development strategy after the defender's progress from Ibrox fringe player to Nigeria international.

The 24-year-old was plucked from England's third tier when he moved from Peterborough to Rangers last summer on a four-year deal.

Advertisement

He started just one Premiership game between August and November amid a difficult start to his Ibrox career, but has since flourished, becoming a regular under Rohl.

Fernandez, who has six goals in 27 Rangers appearances, made his Nigeria debut in a victory over Iran last week then scored in his first international start, the 2-2 draw with Jordan.

"Football is about development," Rangers head coach Rohl said of Fernandez.

"It's about belief. I think it was not easy for him when I arrived. He was, I will not say far away, but he was not in a position to be a starter. And then there was a little bit of an issue with timing when he got injuries and then he stepped up.

Advertisement

"In general now he puts in a great performance, week by week. There's still things to improve but when you look at it, you sign a player from League One and he goes on to the national team and he scores.

"It's important for us to win something, but besides the results it's also a great way to show players what you can do at Rangers, we want to develop players.

"It's not a secret that part of our business is to create value for the club. I think when you see now how we create the value for money, then he's a little bit of a role model.

"Now it's about playing consistently at this level, not dropping back. He's calm on the ball. He is getting better and better also against the ball.

Advertisement

"There's a reason why I put him in, I trust him. And we should not forget he's still a right-footed player on the left side and he's doing really well in that.

"I'm happy with his development and hope it continues because it's the most important thing in football. It's never about the past, it's always about tomorrow."

Click here to read article