Kevin Muscat work permit news surfaces as Rangers close in on Australian manager
Steven Gerrard has been weirdly installed as the odds-on favourite to be Rangers’ next manager again, despite reports suggesting that Kevin Muscat is increasingly likely to be the man to take charge.
Rangers’ talks broke down with Gerrard at the weekend, but on Wednesday, he was suddenly back in the running with certain bookmakers.
It’s since been reported that Rangers have not renewed talks with Gerrard, but the development has been bizarre all the same.
Shanghai Port manager Muscat seems to be the main focus of speculation right now, even though he’s likely to see out the remainder of the 2025 Chinese Super League season.
Kevin Muscat edges closer to job with Neil McCann potentially taking temporary charge
Earlier this week, news emerged that Rangers are seriously considering hiring Muscat, even though he’d be unavailable until late November with Shanghai Port chasing down the Chinese league title.
That means that a short-term solution is on the cards, with ex-Gers winger Neil McCann potentially taking the reins on an interim basis until Muscat can wave goodbye to Shanghai and say hello to Glasgow.
Ex-Sheffield Wednesday manager Danny Rohl has also been interviewed by the Light Blues as they mull over who will succeed Russell Martin in the Ibrox hotseat.
According to Heart & Hand podcaster David Edgar, who has strong and reliable links to Rangers, Rohl is waiting patiently to find out the result of his talks even though he’d need a work permit to head to Ibrox.
Meanwhile, with Muscat, Edgar claims that the ex-Australia international’s dual nationality means that no such red tape would hold up his arrival in Govan.
“Danny Rohl has been sitting there, interviewed for a few days now. If they really wanted him, he could have been appointed; he could have been there and doing the job by now, or certainly waiting on a work permit,” said Edgar on the Heart & Hand’s Daily Update on 15 October.
“Kevin Muscat, by the way, doesn’t need a work permit. He has dual nationality, I’m told, and therefore wouldn’t face that issue.
“But of course, there would be plenty of time to apply for one if it was needed because he’s not going to be here for a few weeks.”
Kevin Muscat’s dual nationality explained
Rangers fans will remember former Australia international Muscat for his one and only season at Ibrox in 2002-03.
In that campaign, the tough-tackling defender helped the Gers win the domestic treble before he left for Millwall.
However, despite the fact that he was capped 46 times by the Socceroos, he was actually born in Crawley in Sussex, England, which means he’d be eligible to work in the UK without any need for a work permit.
- Muscat represented Crystal Palace, Wolves, Rangers and Millwall in the UK during his playing days.
- His playing career started and ended in Australia with Sunshine George Cross.
- The ex-defender also played for Heidelberg United, South Melbourne and Melbourne Victory, who he later managed, in Australia.
- Muscat played 46 times for Australia and scored 10 goals.
Muscat is also of Maltese descent, which probably means that he’s also had no problems working within the EU, too.
Earlier in his managerial career, Muscat was briefly in charge of Belgian side St-Truiden in between title-winning spells at Melbourne Victory and Yokohama F Marinos.
He’s been in charge of Shanghai Port since 2023 and would win the Chinese Super League for a second time in a row with them if he manages to see out the final four games of the season without losing a two-point lead at the top of the table.
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