OPINION
When Rangers appointed Steven Gerrard as their new manager at the beginning of the summer, few would have expected the club to back him with so many signings in the window.
Obviously there were promises made to the Liverpool legend before he signed on to become the new boss, but the emphatic nature of the club’s business this summer was not fully foreseen.
The Light Blues have brought in 11 players so far in the window, and while they have lost several first-team players as well, this quantity of signings has taken the league by surprise.
Gerrard has now issued his thanks to chairman Dave King, saying, as quoted by the Daily Mail: “He has been a fantastic support to me and so have the board. Our relationship is really strong at the moment and I am enjoying it.
“I have had total support, I couldn’t have asked for anything more really. I think it is very important, all around the club, that we are all one, that we are all together and that we all believe in what we are trying to do.”
This love-in is an absolute sea-change in relations between manager and board when compared to the two previous Rangers managers, and will hopefully usher in a new era of sustained success for the club.
Pedro Caixinha was always on the back foot after being backed to spend last summer, and poor performances on the pitch cemented his exit from the club.
Graeme Murty was always seen as a stop-gap despite some good results, and a lack of board backing led to his early demise at the end of last term.
Gerrard has instead enjoyed total backing from King and his associates, and that is the kind of relationship that is needed for a club to win league titles.
Any kind of disjoint between board and manager can lead to huge issues, as previously seen at Ibrox, and this change should see a new period of success in the blue half of Glasgow.
Sunday’s league opener against Aberdeen should give some indication of the season ahead, but a poor result should not dishearten fans too much, with the long-term success of the club now back in focus.