Rangers told you can 'smell fear' on them as matchwinner brands Ibrox 'just another place'

Racing into a 2-0 lead thanks to first-half goals from Lukas Fadinger and Longelo, Motherwell looked in complete control in the opening 45 minutes, but found themselves pegged back by strikes from Youssef Chermiti and Nico Raskin in the second period as Danny Rohl’s side desperately tried to swing the game in their favour.

The visitors weren’t to be denied, though, and the left-back scored again in the final minute of the game to seal a famous 3-2 win. Longelo confessed he and his teammates felt encouraged to pounce as the home side buckled under the pressure of the title race.

“It's just another place that we came to and we've done our job,” said Longelo. “We have belief and togetherness. The group that we have, the squad that we have, the staff members, we're all one unit. There's a great amount of chemistry, everyone gets along well. It's just all that one big family.

“The manager shows a lot of faith in us, so it's only right that we repay him on the pitch. We could smell it [the pressure on Rangers]. That would be the same for any team in their position, there would be a lot of pressure. Obviously, we know our qualities and we know what we can bring and we just played to our strengths.”

Moving six points clear of fourth-placed Hibs, who fell to a narrow 2-1 defeat to Hearts at Easter Road at the weekend, Motherwell can cement a place in next season's Conference League qualifiers with seven points from their final four games. Having been able to snap their five game winless run with victory against Rangers, the 25-year-old defender is confident his side can now look forward to ending the season strong and cap off a memorable season at Fir Park by sealing a spot in Europe for the first time since the 2022/23 season.

“It's a special feeling getting a last-minute goal,” said Longelo. “It's always a good feeling, obviously, not just for me, but the whole team. Getting three points, any last-minute goals, it's a massive feeling. I feel like any win gives us a huge amount of belief no matter who we play and we step out to win, it’s not just at Ibrox.

“We've created so many chances [against Rangers in games earlier this season] and it was always in the early moments, but on Sunday we managed to put them to bed and we got what we deserved, I believe. I didn't really see it [his goal] towards the end. I just saw the ball go in and once it went in, I was just off. Whether it was a deflection or not, I don't really care, we won the game. That's all that matters.”

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