Rangers need to pull the trigger on Beale now: Opinion
By James Black
Saturday’s 3-1 capitulation against Aberdeen at Ibrox must surely be the final straw in Michael Beale’s abject spell as Rangers manager – and the Gers hierarchy needs to pull the trigger and fire him now or risk things becoming REALLY toxic.
While there have been calls for the manager’s head since the opening-day defeat at Kilmarnock, there can be no arguments that Beale deserves more time to try to put things right.
Beale has to leave Rangers TONIGHT
Three defeats in the opening seven league games is simply not good enough and for ANY Rangers boss to be ostensibly out of the title race before October has to be enough for the board to let the axe fall.
In the wake of the 3-1 defeat by an Aberdeen side who had only one league win to their name so far this season, Beale offered up the expected excuses involving injuries but it just doesn’t cut it anymore.
While there are some key players sidelined, it doesn’t excuse the spineless manner of the performance from Beale’s side – nor does it give the Rangers boss an ‘out’ when the XI that started at Ibrox contained five players brought to the club by Beale over the summer.
In fact, it only goes to highlight the problems Rangers have had this season that five summer signings started today and yet we look considerably worse than we did with Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent sauntering about counting down the days until they got their Ibrox exit.
Just what the hell did Beale and his staff watch when they were deciding to bring in some of the utter dross that landed in G51 this summer?
Recruitment failures go way beyond Ross Wilson’s failed tenure
Last season, Ross Wilson was fingered as the bogeyman for Rangers’ poor recruitment but with Wilson long gone and the Gers still signing garbage, the blame falls squarely at Beale’s door.
The manager, by his own word, was handed a substantial transfer kitty over the summer but – with the exception of Jack Butland – is there any of the summer signings that are an improvement on who they replaced?
Last season’s strikeforce of Alfredo Morelos, Antonio Colak, and Fashion Sakala may have had their flaws but there can’t be a bluenose anywhere who wouldn’t prefer that trio to Cyriel Dessers, Sam Lammers, and Danilo right now.
The complete failure to replace Scott Arfield and have someone who can come off the bench and add some quality, as well as some energy, is unforgivable – yet entirely on-brand for Rangers in 2023.
Rangers board need to act now – for their own sake as much as the club’s
After the summer changes in the boardroom that saw James Bisgrove assume the CEO position following Stewart Robertson’s resignation, fans were expecting things at the executive level and the club to start looking like a modern, forward-thinking football club.
If the board wants to keep the fans onside, then there is only one course of action – sacking Michael Beale.
The board has generated some goodwill with fans in recent months but if they are serious about what they’ve said, Beale needs to go.
It’s all well and good launching ‘engagement strategies’ and talking about redeveloping Ibrox and increasing the capacity at our beloved home but it will count for nothing if we can’t get the bread and butter right.
Bisgrove and co have got to be decisive and they’ve got to be swift. There’s no room for sentimentality when it comes to sacking a manager.
They’ve also got to get the next one right.
There’s no room for error with Beale’s replacement or we could seriously be looking at another prolonged spell of title dominance for the mob across the city.
However, we also can’t afford to sit and wait for things to get worse – not that they can get much worse.
One thing’s for certain though, we can’t go into October with Michael Beale remaining as Rangers boss.