Chris Sutton reacts to Rangers defeat by Aberdeen, points finger at Michael Beale amid sack pressure
Chris Sutton piled the pressure on Michael Beale after Rangers were beaten at home by Aberdeen to leave them further adrift in the league.
The Sky Sports pundit reacted on Twitter after the final whistle as the Light Blues went down 3-1 at Ibrox on 30 September, knowingly pointing out “it is Michael Beale’s Rangers team as well this season”.
The Gers boss had been afforded the benefit of the doubt after taking over from Giovanni van Bronckhorst in-season last term, but brought in nine new signings this summer before a miserable start to the campaign has left him under huge pressure.
Sutton wrote: “Well played Barry Robson and Aberdeen. It is Michael Beale’s Rangers team as well this season…”
On his way?
It is clear what Sutton is implying, and for once he won’t find many Gers supporters who feel any differently after yet another poor performance, and this time with a terrible result to boot.
Fans had already made their feelings clear after a slog of a 1-0 win against Motherwell a week ago (24 September), but while Beale kept winning he could keep the wolves from the door.
Losing in depressing fashion to leave his side seven points adrift of Celtic already means he is unlikely to be able to, so all eyes will turn towards the Ibrox boardroom and chairman John Bennett.
The Rangers chief clearly didn’t want to be faced with this decision so early in the campaign, and after bankrolling an extensive overhaul in the transfer market.
An injury crisis has obviously worked against Beale but the standard of the performances has been fairly poor on the whole ever since the season started.
A 4-0 Viaplay Cup victory over Livingston in midweek suggested that perhaps a corner was being turned, but the club fell back to earth with a major thud back in the SPFL and the writing feels like it is on the wall now.
In other Rangers news, Graham Spiers says Beale “is going to be sacked” in his reaction to the Aberdeen loss.