Rangers director of football latest: key update emerges from Ibrox as Danny Rohl left with January challenge
The latest developments from Ibrox as Rangers aim to fill two key vacancies
Rangers are expected to prioritise their search for a new chief executive before turning their attention to the director of football vacancy at the club.
Last month, the Ibrox side in a major shakeup parted ways with two senior figures in chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell.
The decision was made as a direct response to the club’s calamitous start to the season under former head coach Russell Martin while also factoring in a hugely underwhelming transfer window where the club were judged to have overspent both in terms of fees and wages on a number of big name additions that as of yet haven’t hit the ground running.
Andrew Cavenagh, the chairman of Rangers, thanked both for their services but stated that the pair no longer aligned with the vision for the football club after less than 12 months in their respective posts. He explained: "We've now had six months since we became part of Rangers to assess the club's needs as well as to get to know Patrick and Kev a bit more. And, simply put, when we think about what we need in both a CEO and sporting director today, it's different than who we think Patrick and Kev are. We want people that align with the vision for the next chapter."
He added: "Responsible change is measured and steady," Cavenagh said. "Our first priority has been to improve the sporting performance and that led to our decision to part ways with Russell and bring in Danny.
“Danny has now started the process of improving the on-pitch performance and that has given us the chance to focus on other parts of the club."
Rangers director of football latest
Rangers are preparing another overhaul upstairs after a turbulent and disjointed start to the campaign. It’s thought Rohl’s appointment played a role in the recent shakeup, as the former Sheffield Wednesday boss now aims to get Rangers closer to the summit after a period of Celtic dominance.
Football Insider understands the chairman’s priority at this point is to hire an experienced figurehead for the chief executive position. That name is undecided at this point but is likely to be brought in before the start of February.
It means Rangers boss Rohl is likely to have to navigate the challenge of his first transfer window in Scottish football without the help of a sporting director as he looks to enhance the tools he currently has at his disposal.
Rohl’s familiar with chaos from his time with Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship, but will hope in the long-term that the new name in the sporting director position can provide him with the support and stability required to help him do the job to the best of his ability.
Rangers need to get this appointment right if they want to capitalise on one of the most open title races in recent years. As it stands, however, there’s still plenty of work to be done as they are seven points behind Celtic and nine adrift of surprise leaders Hearts after 13 matches.