Rangers display at Hearts summed up by Kris Boyd in one word as pundit questions star who 'struggled'
Light Blues weren’t at their best but managed to salvage a point at Tynecastle
Rangers hero Kris Boyd described his old side as ‘disjoined’ in their 2-2 Premiership draw at Hearts - and thought defender Emmanuel Fernandez particularly ‘struggled’ at Tynecastle.
The Nigerian was at the heart of a defence which was under pressure from the hosts for long periods. Rangers took the lead against the run of play through Kevin Kelsy but were then subjected to wave after wave of Hearts attacks. The hosts’ pressure eventually told in the second half when Claudio Braga and Calvin Miller overturned the deficit, before Fernandez’ central defensive partner Olwethu Makhanya salvaged a point in the dying ember.
On a night where title rivals Celtic also dropped points at home to Dundee United, it’s a case of as you were in the Scottish Premiership table. However, Boyd thinks the Rangers performance at Tynecastle was concerning, as he explained during his analysis on Sky Sports.
How were Rangers ‘disjointed’ in Hearts stalemate?
The pundit said: “They’ve stolen a point because, especially that second half, it’s got to be better. If you’re going to win a league, there has to be periods in games where you dominate that game.
Hearts haven’t lost at home in the league since April 2025, therefore at face value, a point may be seen as a positive result. However, there 7-1 defeat at Celtic Park 10 days ago showed that there defence can be got at, however Boyd thinks Rangers struggled to lay a glove on their opponents and manage the game.
He continued: “When you’re suffering, put together a few passes that frustrate the opposition. Trust me, there is nothing worse than chasing a team that keep the ball for a period of time. Rangers don’t do that. Everything just seems disjointed.”
Fernandez ‘struggled’ with Gorgie onslaught
Rangers have stood firm defensively with their backs against the wall at places like Celtic Park and Pittodrie already this season. But at Tynecastle, they looked shaky. Fernandez gave away a few fouls in the first half after being caught out by Hearts and received an early caution. From then on in, Boyd thinks the defender looked like a bag of nerves.
He added: “Rangers really struggled to deal with Hearts. Emmanuel Fernandez, he looked so at unease with the Hearts attacking players. The amount of times that he caused problems for his own team-mates, again (was startling).”
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