Rangers: Gary Keown tells John Bennett to put Michael Beale out of his misery
John Bennett must put Michael Beale “out of his misery” and sack the boss after Rangers suffered a 3-1 loss to Aberdeen, according to Gary Keown.
Writing in the print edition of the Scottish Mail on Sunday (1 October, pg 97), the journalist suggested that the Ibrox defeat should be Beale’s last chance following a poor start to the season.
Addressing Bennett directly, Keown urged the chairman to ignore encouraging statistics about their attacking talent, who have underwhelmed this season.
Keown wrote: “NOTE to Rangers chairman John Bennett. Let’s have no more chat from Michael Beale about players’ goals-to-minutes ratios and all sorts of other irrelevant statistics.
“Just put the poor fella out of his misery and let everyone get on with their life. Yesterday’s 3-1 home defeat by Aberdeen has to be the final straw. Surely.”
Damning
While Rangers have ground out wins in recent weeks, their home loss to Aberdeen has brought all the pressure straight back to Beale’s door.
His side were weak at the front and the back at Ibrox. Despite having 18 shots and 71% possession, the Gers managed to convert just one goal through Abdallah Sima, but frequent big chances were missed and the lack of threat cost them any chance of three points [SofaScore].
Many speculated that one more big defeat could spell the end for Beale, especially if they continued to lose ground on Celtic. With Brendan Rodgers’ side netting a 97th-minute winner against Motherwell in the early kickoff to claim all three points, Rangers now struggle seven points behind the Hoops.
The board may be reluctant to depart with Beale without a replacement lined up, but reportedly, the hierarchy has been considering replacements. The Sun claimed (13 September) that former Chelsea boss Graham Potter rejected the chance to join the club, while TEAMTalk claimed (26 September) that AZ Alkmaar boss Pascal Jansen was being monitored, suggesting that a departure has been coming.
Beale’s thin ice has just got thinner after this defeat, and there will certainly be at least discussions between Bennett and the rest of the board.
In other Rangers news, a BBC pundit has mocked Beale after the Gers’ loss to Aberdeen.