James McFadden was clearly not happy with Emmanuel Fernandez as Rangers visited Hearts at Tynecastle on Wednesday.

The defender was handed a start by Derek McInnes, and it did not take him long to make his first big error in the game.

He struggled to deal with the ball near the halfway line which led to Hearts creating an attacking opportunity in the fourth minute, and the Light Blues will consider themselves fortunate to not concede a shot on goal.

James McFadden slams Emmanuel Fernandez as Nicolas Raskin picks up yellow card

McFadden has slammed Fernandez for making the error, as that forced Nicolas Raskin to cover up for him in a dangerous position. The Belgium international had no option but to make a challenge from behind, which saw him picking up an early booking.

Had the midfielder not done that, Hearts appeared clean through on Ivor Pandur’s goal and would have probably mustered a big chance. Raskin knew that and took one for the team, but he then gave the centre-back a piece of his mind.

Reacting to that on Sky Sports Football, McFadden said: “Fernandez takes far too long. Raskin seen having a go at Fernandez for not dealing with it. Takes one for the team there, Raskin.”

While it may not have been ideal for fans to see one of their players having a go at their teammates, it was crucial given how early it was in the game. That meant that Raskin would have to be careful with his challenges all game, but at least his comments would have fired up Fernandez.

The centre-back needs to improve in the second half as he made another mistake in the 27th minute as he committed a needless foul in the defensive third to give Hearts a good free-kick opportunity. Fortunately for the visitors, they failed to score from it. He did pick up a yellow in the 44th minute for making a questionable challenge on the edge of the penalty area, culminating a poor first half for him.

It remains to be seen whether or not Raskin plays the full game, as McInnes may look to kill things in the second half, and for that he could bring on Vanja Dragojevic or even ask James Penrice to move into midfield.