Close the gap on an all conquering Celtic side, Alex McLeish already has that on his CV.

The former Rangers boss has once again been linked with the Gers manager’s job with Mark Warburton vacating the post late last week, with many in the media speculating that Alex could come in as an interim coach. This would give the board time to get things in place for a new regime to take charge in the summer.

It certainly seems to make sense. Alex, as he has previously stated, is a ‘Rangers man‘. He’s a manager who knows what the job entails and the pressures and expectations that comes along with it.

He can be a bit of a pragmatic gaffer but surely that’s what Rangers need at the moment as they chase down second place and try and stop Celtic from clinching a domestic treble.

Yes the Govan side are in a mess but the team he inherited, back in 2001, were also in a sorry state. But in his first spell in charge he managed to turn things around and get the club going in the right direction.

Now obviously there are some differences between the two eras, back then he had some cash to spend and he had a better calibre of player to choose from. But in truth, this current Gers squad aren’t actually bad, they just need focus and work more on the basics.

You would give McLeish the remainder of the season to steady the ship and try and reach the objection of finishing in second place. I’d imagine he would also be given the task to deem who is worthy of the jersey and who should depart come the summer.

At the same time, the Rangers board will need to get to work and find the best long-term solution. They need to cast the net far and wide, in the search of a new full-time boss. I wouldn’t rule out McLeish from getting it but they can’t dither on the decision.

I’ve no idea why they’ve not hired a Director of Football before now, but I think they need to make that another priority appointment. I would urge them to forget about an old boys act and not hire a former manager. They are better off going for someone who has a good history in football administration and with a decent recruitment record.

The Gers board also need to get a credible scouting network on the go. It’s ridiculous that they’ve basically left everything up to two men to do the scouting and recruiting. The club need to resemble a properly functioning football business again.

The only way to really close the gap on Celtic, is by forward planning (especially if you cannot match them financially). You need to get the whole club working together and to the same plan. It has to be about getting the best from your academy, scouting and recruiting young talented hungry players that will add value and more importantly improve your squad. Plus you need to drill it into your first team that at Rangers the demands are simple.. You need to win and it doesn’t need to be pretty!

In that regard Alex McLeish might be a good starting block in which to build from, as he’s has a track record of doing it before.

Posted on February 14th, 2017 by scott
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