Celtic have to be the benchmark for Rangers in their manager hunt, writes Kris Boyd
WHOEVER takes over at Rangers has a monumental job on their hands trying to close the gap on Celtic.
But, by the same token, the new gaffer will also be just two matches away from securing the first silverware of the season.
And a Viaplay Cup triumph at Hampden might just prove to be the catalyst for some drastically needed improvement around Ibrox.
Among this current group of Rangers players are a number who have repeatedly failed to collect the trophies they should have.
Nothing should be taken for granted with them.
James Tavernier, Connor Goldson, Ryan Jack, Borna Barisic and John Lundstram seem to be getting plenty of criticism of late for their lack of success in Light Blue.
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Yet the strange thing is that these players have proved they CAN deliver in big matches. Sometimes.
You can’t just pretend winning 55 or the run to the Europa League final never happened.
Those five played a monumental part in both the Premiership triumph and getting to Seville.
The big problem is not talent, but consistency.
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Far too often domestically, they haven’t been able to hit those heights week in, week out — and that’s why they have been miles off Celtic.
While Ibrox fans won’t want to hear this, Celtic have to be the benchmark for the new manager — the exact same as when Martin O’Neill arrived at Parkhead and said Rangers were the target.
Celtic’s level of consistency and winning habit is where my old club needs to be.
The first thing the new manager must do when he walks through the door is get everybody onside.
In any squad there will always be players out of the picture, so the whole group needs to be singing from the same hymn sheet.
I genuinely don’t see any bad eggs or anything like that in this group.
They are just massively under-performing and shot of any confidence at the moment.
The next gaffer has to come up with a plan to get them firing again.
Sounds simple, but if it was that easy we would all be top managers.
Whether it is Kevin Muscat or Philippe Clement, they will need to be good on the grass.
They must find a way of improving a whole raft of new signings who do not look anywhere near the standard required at Ibrox.
And while he is at it, he must urge players to keep some thoughts to themselves.
Do your talking on the pitch, not off it. That was always the mantra of my old gaffer Walter Smith.
Very rarely did you hear him or his team publicly tell the world how good they were.
But I can guarantee that inside the dressing-room we knew we would win big games and collect trophies.
We also knew that, over the course and distance of a whole season, we could go toe-to-toe with Celtic.
The main focus was winning domestically. Anything we achieved in Europe was a bonus. Your bread and butter must always be the priority in Scotland.
I’ve always thought having a core of home-grown players in your ranks helped get that straight.
And if it was me taking over at Ibrox, the first thing I would do is bring in some Scots who know and understand the pressures of life at the Old Firm.
I’m not for one minute suggesting the foreign imports don’t get it. A lot of them do.
But I’m a firm believer every club in the land needs people who know the league and the opposition players inside out.
To be honest, I thought Rangers would have had Michael Beale’s successor in place by now.
Still, providing the appointment turns out to be the right one, then taking their time might be no bad thing.
The longer the search goes on, the more you wonder what the hold-up has been.
Clement has been out of work since leaving Monaco in June, so if he really wanted the gig then you’d think he would be in Glasgow already.
Muscat hinted the second leg of the cup semi-final with Yokohama F. Marinos this weekend could be his last game in Japan.
From the outside looking in, it’s clear the Gers board is split down the middle on who to appoint.
If agreement was unanimous, then someone would be in the dugout right now — but that is clearly not the case.
Whoever they go for, there is no margin for error this time.
And the new man must start winning games of football.
I keep hearing about Muscat having an entertaining and cohesive style of play.
That is all fine and dandy down the line. All that matters, certainly in the short-term, is picking up three points every weekend.
That, and closing the gap on Celtic, is the only way to impress the supporters.
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Sure, style is all well and good — but right now it is all about substance for Rangers.
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