So it looks like Patrick Stewart is preparing to spell out what’s what on the transfer front for Rangers.
Philippe Clement has been teasing an announcement from the new CEO for the past week and it seems we’re getting closer to finally hearing from the new Ibrox chief himself. Listen, we all know that given the club’s financial situation, there’s unlikely to be the influx of signings that the supporters – and you can believe Clement too – will want to see arriving this month.
But receiving the cold-hard truth from Stewart is the very least the punters deserve – even if they may not enjoy hearing to what he has to say. There were 3000 fans who braved sub-zero conditions to follow the team to Dens Park the other night to watch the team slip up yet again. If they’re not going to be rewarded for that show of loyalty with new faces because the money simply isn’t there, then they’ll just have to accept that.
I’m sure Stewart will be straight with them and explain why and what he’s doing to make sure things are fixed going forward. He seems a good guy who is desperate to play a part in Rangers’ revival.
It’s going to be a big job but I know he’s up for the task. However, the fact remains that Rangers are still paying for mistakes made in the past. James Taylor, the club’s financial guru, admitted as much at the AGM.
They’ve had to take a hit clearing out players who weren’t up to the job while at the same time slashing the wage bill. Costs have been cut and Clement is having to rebuild a squad with a fraction of the budget his predecessor’s enjoyed.
Those facts are undeniable – but I get that fans might not want to listen to that while seeing their team spill points every time they climb off the team bus. I’m not really one who is big on stats, but I read that Clement’s side have taken just 13 points from 33 available on the road this season.
To be honest I was shocked. I know things have been difficult this season but when you see it written down in black and white like that then it really does ram home how far off the team have been this term.
Gers have picked up just one more point on their travels than Ross County, who sit 10th. It’s nowhere near good enough and the fans have every right to lash out like they did at Dens the other night.
The punters who pack out away venues every other week are rightly regarded as the hard-core element of the support but when you lose their trust, it is always an ominous sign for a manager. So there’s no doubt Clement is in a concerning position having been told where to go by the Bears on Tayside.
If he’s to win them back over, then halting these worrying collapses on opposition territory is his No1 priority. We all know that Rangers – like Celtic – have a huge cash advantage over their domestic rivals but these sides know how to make life difficult. I know that only too well myself.
If you’re talking about technical ability, the best Rangers side I played for was the one built by Dick Advocaat. You had some supremely talented individuals like Jorg Albertz, Gio van Bronckhorst, Ronald de Boer and Neil McCann in the dressing room at that time. But these were also guys who could grind it out when the occasion required.
We’ve seen moments from this current Rangers line-up, like the first half an hour at Easter Road, where they put on a proper show of attacking intent. But too often they lose the battle and fail to knuckle down and deal with the ugly side of the game.
I heard the manager again use the excuse of tiredness in the ranks. Aye, OK the players are going through a really busy schedule right now.
But that’s what you should expect when you sign for Rangers. As far as I’m concerned, you get paid at Ibrox precisely because you’re expected to work overtime, playing three games a week.
Throughout my time at Ibrox it was the norm to hit almost 50 games a year for Rangers. The season we went to the UEFA Cup Final I made 62 appearances and another four for Scotland.
Of course there were times when I felt a bit leggy but it was about managing your way through the schedule, choosing when to turn the tempo up to ensure I was most effective. Not enough of the team right now have worked out how to do that.
The one guy who has it seems is Vaclav Cerny. He’s a player I like and would love to see stay beyond this year’s loan. He’s not been quite as prominent in general play lately and perhaps that is down to his fatigue levels.
But he’s a player who can come up with big moments, as you saw with his equaliser against Dundee. It was his 11th goal of the season and most of those have been vital to Gers. I read another stat this morning which said his goals have directly contributed 14 points to the Ibrox cause. Take them out and we’d be sitting level with sixth-placed St Mirren.
It looks like his German parent club will be looking for a fee north of £6million but will that be beyond Rangers’ budget? We’ll just have to wait to hear what Patrick Stewart has to say for himself.