Rangers takeover news: Update on 'legalities' of Ibrox deal as ex-Bolton Wanderers man spotted

Rangers have had a free weekend due to being knocked out of the Scottish Cup by Queen’s Park. They have been able to rest and recover ahead of their upcoming games.

The Gers have placed Barry Ferguson in caretaker charge following their decision to sack Philippe Clement. The Glasgow side will be carefully weighing up their managerial options.

They won 3-1 away at Fenerbahce in the first leg of their Europa League match-up last time out. The Turkish side make the trip to Ibrox this Thursday for the second leg.

Rangers takeover latest

The 49ers Enterprises are in the process of taking over Rangers. Paraag Marathe and Andrew Cavenagh are due to acquire a 51% stake if an agreement is met.

Writing in the Daily Mail, reporter Gary Keown has shared htis update: “That only leaves the old Teddy Bears, then, and the truth is that a figurehead of his [Mourinho’s] ilk is pretty much the last thing the Ibrox club need as they prepare for the Great Reset under the US consortium now at the stage of going through the legalities ahead of sweeping into power.”

The journalist has said the US consortium are ‘going through the legalities’ at this moment in time. An exact timeframe of when it will be finalised is yet to be known at this stage.

Key figure spotted

Gretar Steinsson, who leads the 49ers’ global football structure, was spotted in the stands at Rangers’ last match against Fenerbahce, as per Ibrox News. As a player, he was an Iceland international with 46 caps under his belt.

He played for Bolton Wanderers from 2008 to 2012 and played over 100 matches for the Trotters whilst they were in the Premier League. The ex-right-back also had spells at Young Boys, AZ Alkmaar and Kayserispor before hanging up his boots in 2013.

Steinsson has since held roles at AZ, Fleetwood Town, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and with the Iceland FA. He linked up with the 49ers in July 2023 following their takeover of Leeds United.

He will have been impressed by what he saw by Rangers against Fenerbahce. They put in a good shift for interim manager Ferguson.

Speaking after their victory in Istanbul, Ferguson said: “There's no way they're going to be carried away here. This is only half-time in the tie. Fenerbahce are a very good team who I think are one of the favourites to win this competition. And they've got one of the best managers there's ever been. They're going to be hurting.

“We all know that we've struggled this season at times at Ibrox. I gave them a pat on the back. They'll go and enjoy the night because I always say enjoy the victories. But there's no way that the tie is over. I’d be an absolute idiot if I thought that because as I said I've got respect.

“I respect Fenerbahce and we need to go rest and recover and make sure we focus on Fenerbahce next Thursday. I’m telling you one thing, it's going to be a real difficult time for us.”