Dave King quizzed on new Rangers manager ahead of takeover developments
Rangers still face uncertainty over who their next manager will be, as talks continue over a potential takeover of the Glasgow club.
Barry Ferguson will finish the season as interim boss, but the former club captain appears unlikely to keep the role on a full-time basis.
Rangers are in talks over a takeover from 49ers Enterprises, which could see the Gers embark on a complete rebuild, but this has not been finalised.
Former Rangers chairman and current shareholder Dave King has now given his verdict on the managerial situation, and when the fans can expect more activity in the takeover.
King shares Rangers manager concern amid takeover
King has now pointed out that Rangers will need their takeover situation resolved soon so they can decide on their next manager before Champions League qualifiers take place in July.
Speaking live on talkSPORT (May 7, 11:58 am), King stated that it may take longer than expected for the new Rangers era to get underway.
“I’m not sure the extent to which they’re applying their mind to the manager situation right now,” he stated of Ferguson’s situation.
“There are still a few things to be done, conditions, approvals from various leagues, the SFA, there’s still some conditions to be done to get the deal across the line.
| Shareholder | Stake |
| Dave King | 12.96% |
| Douglas Park | 11.54% |
| George Taylor | 10.22% |
| Stuart Gibson | 9.53% |
| Julian Wolhardt | 9.53% |
| John Halsted | 9.53% |
| John Bennett | 7.11% |
“While they will be looking at what they have to do because they will have to hit the ground running quite quickly, because there’s Champions League qualifiers coming up.
“Let’s say this deal realistically happens, say mid-June, I think May is not possible, but let’s say mid-June is realistic, and they’re now sitting there in the seat, that doesn’t give them a lot of time to start getting business done and preparing for Champions League qualifiers.
“I’m sure they’ll be looking at that, but as far as who the manager will be, I’ve no idea.”
Rangers need to narrow manager search soon
It appears far more likely that Ferguson will be replaced, rather than being handed the Rangers job on a full-time basis.
Several names have been linked including former Leipzig boss Marco Rose, as well as former Rangers manager Steven Gerrard.
A wide range of names have been touted for the role, with differing levels of experience and pedigree, and this perhaps shows that there is still a lot of work for Paraag Marathe and Andrew Cavenagh to do in terms of narrowing the candidates they are looking at.
Rangers need to complete their takeover quickly and decide which profile of manager is best to give whoever comes in a stronger chance of success, with a full pre-season to mould his squad into one which can challenge Celtic’s dominance at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
With current shareholders in the dark, it is good to see the 49ers keeping things under wraps from those who will be departing Ibrox sooner rather than later.
The Americans take these matters very seriously, and there will be very little leaked once they take over, which can only be a good thing.