Rohl reckons that one January transfer recruit is eerily similar to the World Cup winner
17:00, 20 Feb 2026Updated 17:02, 20 Feb 2026
Thomas Muller(Image: Getty Images)
Comparing Ryan Naderi to a World Cup winner might seem like heavy praise for a kid stepping up from Germany’s third division.
But Danny Rohl reckons Rangers’ Thomas Muller-light is the perfect strike partner to help Youssef Chermiti carry the weight of the goalscoring burden at Ibrox. Chermiti stole the headlines with his match-winning hat-trick in last week’s top-of-the-table showdown with Hearts.
But Rohl was delighted to see new boy Naderi chip in with a hefty contribution of his own. It was the £4.75million January recruit from Hansa Rostock’s determination to put Michael Steinwender under pressure that forced the Jambos defender into the own goal that drew Gers level after Marc Leonard’s early opener.
And his workmate off the ball was key to making the space for Chermiti to smash home his triumphant treble. And for Rohl, Naderi’s performance gave him flashbacks to one of his old Bayern Munich pals.
The German gaffer said: “Yeah, with Ryan, I said to him after training this week that he’s a little bit like Thomas Muller! Sometimes you don’t know how, but he’s doing the right things.
“I think it’s great to play with two strikers up front. It’s probably not always the shape we’ll use but I think it was good with our wingers in good positions as well.
“Ryan is very impressive against the ball, very sharp, has good intensity, he brings a lot of balls in and gives us a good structure.
Ryan Naderi celebrates after scoring to make it 6-0
“And in the box, he’s always in the right moments.
“It gives a little bit more time for the other strikers, I think that’s the advantage of having two strikers up front.”
Rohl hailed Chermiti as a big player for the big moments after he followed up his derby double at Celtic Park with another crucial clutch against the Jambos.
But the Gers boss is now looking for the £8m man to back up his hat-trick against Livingston after conceding that Sunday’s trip to Almondvale is every bit as crucial as the Jambos joust which allowed the Light Blues to cut the gap at the top to just two points with 11 games to go.
He said: “Youssef always tries to score.
“He comes in fantastic situations. Before I thought it was always important that he had these moments – but now it’s about being clinical.
“Against Hearts, he had a fantastic day, it was really outstanding. He had some good assistance, especially the cross ball from Andreas Skov Olsen, I think it was great to see him.
“But in the second half of the season you cannot speak about small games – every game is important because after this game, there’s even less games to go. I think that’s what we have to understand, not just Youssef.”
Rohl was wowed by the electric atmosphere at Ibrox last week.
But for a moment he must have feared the air was going to be sucked out of the place by Celtic’s last-gasp win at Rugby Park just moments before his team kicked off.
“I would be lying if I say you just focused on your game, but of course I was aware,” he said. “From what I heard around us in the [hospitality] boxes, I think everyone was surprised by the result.
“But this is football, I had a feeling the game would finish like this, because it was normal.
“For me it was more about our reaction, it was really strong.
“If you you look back to the whole day, at one point you’re thinking after the first result ‘oh, at 2-0 it could have been a different ending’ [at Rugby Park].
“Then you go 1-0 down [to Hearts] … but we came back and came back again, and finally we could close the gap to just two points, and this is great.
“But, we have to take more points until the end of the season now. [Then the race] is on.”
Gers will have to deal with the pressure of coming up with a response again this weekend, with Hearts at home to Falkirk on Sunday before the Light Blues head to Livi.
But the more Rohl looks around his dressing room, the more he sees a group of players who can live with the strain of the run-in.
He said: “Ah, in general, I think this question we will have now in the next three months a lot.
“After every result we will think, ‘maybe it could be this team, it could be that team’ [who wins the title].
“I’m totally convinced that it’s now about consistency, who takes the most points until the split.
“I think that’s a big part of it. You have to prepare for the final five games by doing well in these next six games. If you do that, you have a great opportunity.
“In the final five games I think everything is possible when you have teams around you.
“It’s crucial now, these next three points are massive. Being two points behind helps and it looks good at the moment.
“But we are still not in the first position, we are still in the second position.”
Asked what a title win would mean to him personally, the Rangers boss preferred to focus on what the effect it would have on the club, squad and supporters he serves.
He said: “That’s a big question. Yeah, it means a lot for me, but of more importance is for the club, for my players.
“It shows that we’ve made a lot of good decisions in the past, but for this we have to go to the end, and this is crucial.
“I totally believe we can do it, really. Not just because of the last result.
“There’s no doubt about the strength of our squad now.
“We have to do it very seriously, very aggressively, have good front foot defending and create chances – then we will see where we are after Sunday’s game.
“It could be a good day for us, a good weekend, but we have to invest again in a lot of good things.”
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