No doubt Nils Koppen’s to-do list will already be stacked high on his Auchenhowie desk.
Rangers’ new technical director has plenty of work to do, that’s for sure. The list of responsibilities on his job spec should keep the Belgian busy behind the scenes as Philippe Clement fights on the Ibrox front line.
For a start, Koppen must forge a relationship with incoming CEO Patrick Stewart who arrives on December 16. And he somehow has to unravel the mess that’s been left behind the scenes at Rangers and find alignment.
That’s the key here. For far too long, this club has been devoid of a strategy or a plan. But there must be a clear idea that runs from the board, through the CEO, Koppen, the academy and Clement. Without that alignment, the club won’t go anywhere.
It’s difficult when the backdrop is a Jekyll and Hyde first-team who look like world beaters in Europe – and panel beaters in the Premiership. And a manager who somehow gets a tune out of his squad on a Thursday night but regularly hears them booed off the park at the weekend.
But irrespective of that, it’s Koppen’s gig now to get everyone at Ibrox signing from the same hymn sheet. The former PSV scout has landed on his feet getting one of the biggest jobs in the UK. We’ll find out if he’s up to it soon enough.
There’s also the small matter of a January transfer window, of course. Rangers badly-need reinforcements. A centre-back, a holding midfielder and a striker should be the priorities. What funds exist remains to be seen. However, that shouldn’t prevent Koppen from doing his homework.
And here’s one task he should be able to get done with relative ease. On January 1, he ought to be speaking to Aberdeen left-back Jack MacKenzie and getting him tied up on a pre-contract deal. Koppen wants Rangers to have more of a Scottish core.
And in years gone by it was common practice for them to suck up the best talent from other top-flight clubs – the likes of Nacho Novo, Kris Boyd, Ryan Jack and others. Abandoning that policy in recent years is another reason why they find themselves currently miles behind Celtic.
But signing MacKenzie should be a no-brainer. The full-back is available on a free and highly unlikely to sign a new deal at Pittodrie.
At 24 years old and 6ft 3in, MacKenzie has all the assets to shine at Rangers.
And they can get him on the cheap which, given the cut-backs forced on Clement, makes it even more appealing. At the moment, Jefte is first-choice in that position. The Brazilian is an astute signing given what Gers paid for him.
He has the tools to be an excellent player and – at 20 – could make the club a healthy profit in the future. He’s worth keeping, unlike £4million Turk Ridvan Yilmaz who is his understudy.
Injuries have curtailed him but he’s been a huge disappointment. His physique and stature were always going to be tested in Scotland. MacKenzie is the opposite. He’s reliable, dependable and available every week.
If Koppen can somehow offload Yilmaz and recoup some of Rangers’ outlay on him, it would be a result. And by replacing him with MacKenzie, it would signify a tidy bit of business for the club.
Dons fans won’t be happy – but that’s not Koppen’s concern. He has a job to do. And getting this deal done would be a decent start.