Rangers have confirmed a key appointment behind the scenes ahead of a busy summer of transfer activity

The San Francisco 49ers are edging closer to a deal to buy Rangers football club in a move which fans hope will see a return to the glory years after more than a decade of almost exclusive Celtic dominance.

The Ibrox club won the title in the 2020/21 season when they finished the entire season unbeaten whilst surpassing the 100 point mark. However, moments like that have been few and far between on the whole over the last 15 years with the club being forced to bounce back through a series of financial setbacks.

Rangers were the dominant team in the late 1980s and 1990s and will at the very least expect to be pushing Celtic all the way in 12 months time at a feeble effort of going after the league title this term.

Fans can expect to see plenty of changes both on and off the pitch in what promises to be an action-packed summer in the blue half of Glasgow. With that in mind, we have rounded up the latest developments surrounding the 49ers and their imminent takeover of one of Scotland’s most well supported and successful football clubs.

Everton’s Kevin Thelwell agrees to make Rangers move

Everton director of football Kevin Thelwell will swap Merseyside for Glasgow this summer after being appointed as the new sporting director of Rangers.

News of the 51-year-old Englishman's appointment came as Rangers confirmed officially for the first time that they are in negotiations with American investors.

The statement published explained: "Rangers and its existing controlling shareholders are in productive conversations with the two lead members of the Consortium, Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprises Global Football Group, about the potential for the Consortium to acquire control of the club and to inject additional capital.

"These discussions reflect a shared recognition of the importance of Rangers FC's long-term direction, ambitions and management."

Who is Kevin Thelwell?

Rangers' incoming sporting director has been with Everton for three years and worked closely with managers such as Frank Lampard and Sean Dyche during the bulk of his time with the Toffees.

Prior to joining Everton,he worked as New York Red Bulls' head of sport and also enjoyed a spell as the director of football with Wolverhampton Wanderers. He’s a familiar face to former Motherwell boss Billy Davies, who had Kevin Thelwell by his side at Preston North End and Derby County.

Rangers chief executive Patrick Stewart said: "Thelwell will assume overall responsibility for all areas of the football operation, including men's, women's and academy," via a website statement.

Thelwell told Rangers' website: "This is a huge honour for me to be joining a club with the size, stature and expectations of Rangers. From the first conversations, it was clear to me how ambitious the club is and I'm excited to play a part in shaping its next chapter." Thelwell suggested that the "men's first-team structure" will be a priority.

Glasgow World reported earlier this week that the board will back the new manager with an estimated £25m budget. Thelwell will work closely with the new boss, who is likely to be a big name with vast experience based on recent reports.