Former Rangers goalkeeper Cammy Bell has questioned Emmanuel Fernandez’s decision-making after the Super Eagles defender was involved in a second-half error during Rangers’ 1-0 win over St Mirren, Nigeriasoccernet.com reports.
Fernandez had won possession around the halfway line but opted for an ambitious flick towards Dujon Sterling, only for St Mirren forward Nikolas Agrafiotis to intercept the attempted pass.
The mistake left Rangers exposed on the counter, forcing Sterling to bring down the advancing opponent with a tactical foul that earned him a yellow card.
Bell, who was working on co-commentary for Rangers TV, criticised Fernandez for taking unnecessary risks in a dangerous area and called for greater discipline from the centre-back.
“When you’re a centre-half, you need to make better decisions,” the 39-year-old said.
“These are bad decisions. That flick there. Can’t be doing that.
“He’s an excellent player, but you just cannot do that,” Bell concluded.
Fernandez nevertheless remained on the pitch for the entire match and helped Rangers keep a clean sheet, despite the earlier mistake and a controversial first-half challenge involving St Mirren’s Ismael Kabia that went unpunished.
Rangers eventually secured all three points through Bojan Miovski, who struck the decisive goal in the 91st minute.
Fernandez has previously admitted that lapses in concentration have contributed to some of his early-season difficulties and revealed that he is working with manager Derek McInnes to eliminate those mistakes from his game.
The Nigerian defender will now be looking to respond on the pitch and prove that the errors are only temporary setbacks as he continues to establish himself at Rangers.