Lee McCulloch issues ‘absolute’ Michael Beale sack verdict at Rangers after defeat by Celtic
Michael Beale should “absolutely not” be sacked by Rangers currently as he just needs to “win his next game”, according to Lee McCulloch.
The former Gers attacker said on PLZ Soccer’s The Football Show Friday (8 September) that such a point will come later in the season if results don’t improve, at which stage the noises will be so loud “people need to listen”, but for now he believes calls for the manager to go are premature.
The 45-year-old believes that there is still a chance that the Ibrox boss can turn things around and ride out the storm despite a rocky start to the campaign leading to a 1-0 loss to Celtic last weekend (3 September).
McCulloch said (30m 40s): “That will come later on in the season, of course, of course. Results will dictate when that time comes or when the noises start getting louder and louder and louder, and people need to listen.
“But for me as it stands, no absolutely not. It’s one Old Firm game into the season, he’s lost it, he’s lost the game. He just needs to win his next game.”
Patient
The former Wigan man’s opinion is certainly valid and any supporters who don’t wish to see the club descend into an annual cycle of changing the manager in the first few months of the season will likely support it.
But the problem for Beale is that it may be one Old Firm into this season, but it is now six into his time in charge at the club and the only one he was emerged victorious from had nothing riding on it.
That 3-0 victory to round off the season last term should have been what he needed to get over the hump in the derby ready to mount a proper title challenge this season.
When Ange Postecoglou left for Tottenham during the summer to be replaced by the returning Brendan Rodgers, and all that represents over at Parkhead, it looked like the ideal opportunity to take advantage.
Instead, Beale’s newly assemble squad has started slowly, lost the SPFL opener, been thrashed in Europe and failed to overcome a weakened Celtic.
That doesn’t necessarily mean he should instantly be jettisoned but it is certainly not what the plan was for the new campaign.
He absolutely might turn things around and lead Rangers on a charge this season, in which case this early panic will appear ludicrous in hindsight, but he is going to need to show signs of that being on the horizon sooner rather than later or he may not get the chance.
In other Rangers news, the board has already started to lay the ground work for removing Beale to leave him out on a limb.