Journalist Robin Bairner isn’t convinced by Rangers‘ chances of regaining the title this season.
After the 55-winning season, expectations at Ibrox were high, but when Steven Gerrard left the club last November, it certainly set the Bears back.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst was appointed manager, but the Gers lost ground in the title race, with their run to the Europa League final a clear distraction.
They relinquished their title to their arch-rivals – a title loss made all the more agonising by the fact that whoever finished first in Scotland automatically qualified for the Champions League group stages.
The Gers almost joined their cross-city rivals but were gut-wrenchingly defeated on penalties in the Europa League showpiece and must face the qualifiers if they are to sit at Europe’s top table alongside the Hoops this season.
Senior Rangers writer Chris Jack of the Glasgow Evening Times has stated that Van Bronckhorst must first tick the box of making it to the Champions League proper in order to take a ‘step forward’, but he also claimed that the Dutchman must ‘simply deliver’ the domestic title in what could prove a make-or-break season for the coach.
However, Bairner has admitted that he is still on the fence when it comes to Van Bronckhorst, and doesn’t feel his side have enough to usurp their fearsome foes.
When asked what he made of Van Bronckhorst’s tenure so far on the Que Golazo YouTube channel, he said: “Obviously, losing Steven Gerrard was very complicated for Rangers because of the timing of it, halfway through the season.
“They looked in a good position to do well in the league at that stage, and for Van Bronckhorst to come in and try to pick up from where Gerrard left off was complicated because he’s a manager with different ideas and a different style, so that was difficult.
“And I would say he was probably disappointing in the end in terms of the league performance because he finished so distant of Celtic last season, but this is offset, of course, by the wonderful run to the Europa League final.
“So Van Bronckhorst did a solid job; he didn’t do a spectacular job. Certainly, this season, Rangers will be looking to take another step forward and to really push Celtic in the league.
“Whether they can do that, I think is questionable. He’s still got something to prove – and particularly in Old Firm matches. They need to improve.”
TIF Thoughts on GVB and Rangers…
Will Giovanni van Bronckhorst succeed at Rangers?
Yes
No
Ross Wilson and his recruitment team have been busy at work this off-season readying a squad capable of conquering Scotland once again.
However, while Antonio Colak, Rabbi Matondo, Tom Lawrence, Malik Tillman, Ben Davies, Ridvan Yilmaz and John Souttar have all arrived, it does remain to be seen whether they can make up for the loss of star departures Joe Aribo and Calvin Bassey.
We are sure to get some idea of how they might fare this term in their first game of the season on Saturday afternoon, in what is set to be a pivotal campaign for the Gers and Van Bronckhorst.