Who Should be The Next Rangers Manager?

The Rangers board acted more quickly than man fans expected. The start to this season has been disastrous. Not just from a result standpoint but the performances have also been terrible.

Minus one good win against Betis a couple of weeks ago, it’s been dire. The football has been turgid and it’s came with poor results. The team don’t have a discernible play style and it’s been unclear what was worked on, on the training pitch.

Change was needed, the players aren’t performing and didn’t look like they knew what they were meant to be doing. It turns out that not all good coaches, make good managers.

Who should be next though? Let’s take a look at the top 3 bookies favourites (as of 02/10/23).

Kevin Muscat 7/2

The ex-Rangers hard-man is currently the favourite with the bookies. His name has been touted around social media the last few weeks. Is that because of his Rangers connection or is there genuinely something in it?

The 50-year-old Australian has had a mixed managerial career so far. Interestingly he’s also replaced Ange Postecoglu at two separate clubs, Melbourne Victory and Yokohama Marinos. These are his managerial stats so far;

• 334 Matches
• 167 Wins
• 68 Draws
• 99 Loses
• 50% Win Rate

In his six years with Melbourne Victory he won the A-League Championship in the 14-15 and 17-18 seasons. Alongside that he won the A-League Premiership in 14-15 and the FFA Cup in 2015.

A disastrous 6 month spell at Sint-Truiden ended after only 15 games, which he won 2 of.

He replaced Ange Postecoglu, who departed for Celtic, at Yokohama in 2021 and won the J-League championship in 2022. He currently has a 57% win rate in Japan but trails Vissel Kobe by 4 points after losing 2-0 to them on Friday.

He likes his team to play quick, pressing attacking football. Do you think he could be the man for the job?

Jesse Marsch 7/1

The 49-year-old American has had most of his success in Austria with RB Salzburg. After that he was given chances at both RB Leipzig and Leeds, where he failed on both occasions.

He only lasted 6 months in Germany and just under a year in England. He’s been out the game for 8 months so this may be the time to get back on the horse.

Here are his managerial stats;

• 339 Matches
• 170 Wins
• 66 Draws
• 103 Losses
• 50.15% Win Rate

In his two years in Austria he won the league and cup double both seasons. That being said, RB Salzburg have a huge budget compared to the rest of the league. Does that mean he could do well at a club like Rangers?

He’s also a fan of the attacking, pressing style and, like Muscat, often opts for a 4231. Is he a candidate that interests you?

Ralph Hasenhüttl 8/1

The 56-year-old Austrian is another who’s managed at the highest level. He managed RB Leipzig for 2 seasons and was at Southampton for 4, with varying levels of success.

He definitely doesn’t have the success levels of the previous two names but was famed for his attacking ‘gegenpress’ style of play and ability to adapt using different formations.

Here are his managerial stats;

• 532 Matches
• 212 Wins
• 142 Draws
• 179 Losess
• 39.66% Win Rate

He famously managed a Southampton side that lost 9-0 to Manchester United. Despite not having great success at the Saints, they were a joy to watch at times.

He’s only ever won one league title and that was 2.Bundesliga with Ingolstadt so he’s not the ‘serial winner’ fans are begging for.

Do you think he would style over substance? Do you think he could be a good Rangers manager?

Conclusion

Steven Davis and Alex Rae will be the two main men in the dugout, presumably, for the next two games before the international break.

That’s when you’d imagine a new manager will be hired. The board said they would take their time with the appointment. However, an international break is a great time for a manager to come in and put their own stamp on things.

That two week break would give someone an excellent chance to get to know the squad and lay out there demands. If it can’t be done though, the club shouldn’t rush into appointing someone in that time.

This is a decision that board must get right. Do any of the names above excite you? Do you have someone realistic in mind?

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