Ally McCoist admits a Chelsea and England legend was his dream choice to become the next Rangers manager before the appointment of Barry Ferguson.
On Sunday night, Rangers sacked Philippe Clement following a disastrous run of form that has left the club trailing arch-rivals Celtic by 13 points in the Scottish Premiership.
The Gers have also been embarrassingly knocked out of the Scottish Cup by second-tier side Queen’s Park and are not fancied to progress in the Europa League after being drawn against Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce in the last-16.
Before Clement’s dismissal, Liverpool and England legend Steven Gerrard was being tipped for a return to the Ibrox dugout, especially after leaving Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq in January.
The 44-year-old is fondly remembered in the blue-half of Glasgow for guiding Rangers to their first Premiership title in 10 years, going the 2020/21 season unbeaten before making an ill-fated switch to Aston Villa.
But on Monday, Rangers announced that former club captain Barry Ferguson had been appointed as head coach until the end of the 2024/25 campaign.
A club statement read: ‘Ferguson, who won five league titles, five Scottish Cups and five League Cups across two spells at Ibrox, will be joined by coaches Issame Charai, Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor.’
Rangers CEO Patrick Stewart added: ‘When I spoke to RangersTV last week, I was clear that everyone is judged on results, and nobody will get unlimited time in any role at the club.
‘Ultimately, the team’s response following their early exit from the Scottish Cup was a cause for deep concern, leading the board to conclude that action had to be taken now.
‘I want to welcome Barry back to the club. We appreciate him and his team stepping into the role at this difficult time. Myself, the board and the executive team will give them our full support for the rest of the campaign.’
Speaking on talkSPORT prior to Ferguson’s return, Rangers legend McCoist named a former Three Lions midfielder as his first pick to get the job – but it wasn’t Gerrard.
‘The decline in the club – on and off the pitch – since they won the league and were beaten on penalties in a Europa League final, after beating RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund… the decline hurts more than anything,’ a despondent McCoist said.
Asked who he wanted to see as manager, the former Scotland striker replied: ‘That is a question. Steven Gerrard would come into the equation obviously because of his success.
‘It would not happen now, but I would have taken a gamble on Frank [Lampard] before he went to Coventry. But he’s doing well at Coventry so I can’t see that happening.
‘There’s definitely one or two options but I don’t think there any glaringly obvious candidates right now.’
Following difficult spells at Everton and Chelsea, Lampard returned to the dugout in November and has enjoyed a strong start with Coventry, winning 10 of his first 19 games.
The Sky Blues have rocketed up the Championship table to seventh and are now just a point off the play-offs as the run-in begins, so there was little chance of Rangers appointing the Chelsea legend.
Ferguson’s first game in the Rangers dugout will be away to Kilmarnock on Wednesday night.
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