Rangers FC: Barry Ferguson announced as head coach until the end of the season
By Robbie Wilson
Rangers have appointed Barry Ferguson as head coach until the end of the season.
The former club captain has been appointed as first team manager and will be backed by the team of Issame Charai, Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor.
Ferguson, who won 5 league titles, 5 Scottish cups and 5 league cups across two spells at Ibrox, has previous managerial experience at clubs such as Alloa Athletic and Kelty Hearts.
Rangers say that they will continue to search for a new permanent manager over the coming months.
The announcement comes after the sacking of former boss Philippe Clement.
Ferguson will lead the team into the remaining games of the SPFL campaign and will also lead his team in Europe, his first test in the Europa League will be a round of 16 tie with Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce.
Clement was sacked following a 2-0 home defeat at the hands of St Mirren. The Belgian boss had been under fire after to the shocking 1-0 defeat against Queen’s Park in the Scottish Cup, but a second home defeat in a row spelled the end for Clement.
Whilst the Gers’ European form was good, their domestic form became the catalyst for the dismissal, with the club currently sitting 13 points behind league leaders Celtic, out of the Scottish Cup and having lost the league cup final to their city rivals, a win that saw them overtake Rangers as Scotland’s most successful club.
Clement was backed by new Chief Executive Patrick Stewart late in January whilst he was under pressure from fans. Stewart said that sacking the Belgian would have been the “easy decision.”
However, after results not improving, Clement was dismissed and the club released the following statement: “The club would like to put on record their sincere thanks to Philippe for his hard work and dedication during his spell in charge. A further update from the club will follow in due course.”
Clement’s poor start to the season was a sign of things to come. A goalless draw away to Hearts and a defeat to Dynamo Kyiv saw the club behind Celtic in the league and out of the Champions League within the first month of the campaign.
The Gers dropped 32 points out of a possible 48 while on the road this season, with defeats coming at Celtic Park and Pittodrie and drawing away from home at Hibs and Dundee.
Clement now sits fifth in the all-time shortest serving permanent managers of Rangers, Patrick Stewart will now have to lead the search for the Ibrox side’s fifth permanent manager since November 2021.
Steven Gerrard and Russell Martin are linked with the permanent job in the summer, with both having ties to the light blues. Martin played 17 games for the Ibrox side in 2018, joining on loan from Norwich.
Gerrard enjoyed a successful time as Rangers boss, winning 124 games and going unbeaten in the 20/21 season, winning the SPFL title with the club, their first in a decade.
