Kevin Muscat ready to answer Rangers manager call as he shelves Yokohama contract offer to clear Ibrox path
The boss is the frontrunner to take over from Michael Beale and could leave the J-League champions.
Kevin Muscat has stalled on signing a new contract in Japan in the hope of landing a dream return to Ibrox.
Record Sport understands the Yokohama F Marinos manager has been offered a new deal to stay in the J-League but held off on committing his future while Michael Beale was fighting a losing battle to remain in charge of Rangers. And, with only weeks to run on his current agreement, that means Muscat would be available for a knock down compensation package of around two months wages’ should his former club make a move.
Muscat has been monitoring the situation from the Far East after being linked with the position when Beale was appointed 10 months ago. And he is now ready to answer the call if Rangers make an approach. It’s understood the Australian’s name has already made it onto a preliminary shortlist along with a number of other potential candidates.
AZ Alkmaar boss Pascal Jansen and Kilmarnock’s Derek McInnes are also expected to form part of the conversation as chief executive James Bisgrove heads up the search for Beale’s replacement. It’s anticipated Bisgrove and chairman John Bennett will spend the next few days examining the credentials of a wide range of various contenders before deciding who makes it through to the interview process, which could begin as soon as next week.
But Muscat is already among the frontrunners and it’s believed the club are keen, at the very least, to hold exploratory talks with the 50-year-old. Muscat is currently in China preparing for an Asian Champions League clash with Shandong Taishan.
He is then scheduled to return to Yokohama for a League Cup semi-final double header against Urawa Reds, staged over four days. The Japanese season shuts down in early December and Muscat’s Marinos bosses want him to put pen to paper on a contract extension before that point – which would ensure a bumper payout if the manager was to then move on elsewhere.
Muscat was right hand man to Ange Postecoglou at Melbourne Victory before taking over from him when the former Celtic boss was headhunted to take charge of Australia’s national team. The pair then hooked up again when Muscat joined the coaching staff at the Socceroos and later replaced his mentor in Yokohama when Postecoglou left the post to take up the Parkhead hotseat in the summer of 2021. Another name that is being linked with Ibrox is former River Plate boss Marcelo Gallardo.
Steven Davis, who will be assisted by former Gers midfielder Alex Rae, has spoken for the first time since being handed the reins. And he talked up the players he has been handed. The 38-year-old said: “I believe in the group that we’ve got.
"Things haven’t gone the way we would have liked and we find ourselves in a situation. But I’m sure with myself and the fans pushing each other in the same direction we’ll go on and get some good results.”