Rangers could appoint ‘interim’ manager as new Kevin Muscat twist emerges

Kevin Muscat is the new favourite for the Rangers job but there is a big question mark around the potential appointment.

The Glasgow giants are still searching for a replacement for Russell Martin, who was sacked by the club following a 1-1 draw with Falkirk.

Rangers have already been rejected by Steven Gerrard and Sean Dyche, sparking concerns about problems behind the scenes.

Former Gers player Muscat is joined by Danny Rohl and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in contention for the job at Ibrox, who have both reportedly had talks with the hierarchy at the club.

Danny Rohl looking focused as Rangers manager in front of the Ibrox
Credit: Hasan Karim, Breaking Media

Rangers may need an interim manager before Kevin Muscat

Muscat is currently in charge of Shanghai Port, who are top of the Chinese Super League with four games remaining of the season.

Aberdeen’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Pittodrie between 2000 and 2004, had lengthy spells as the chief of Everton and Aston Villa and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that Rangers may have to bring in an interim manager before they can appoint the former Australian international.

Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness insisted that Muscat won’t want to leave Shanghai Port before the end of the season.

Wyness questioned whether Rangers can really afford to wait another month before bringing in a permanent manager, given their current situation.

He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “Look, I know Kevin Muscat’s had success. I think the question mark here is going to be his team, Shanghai Port, where he’s managing right now.

They’ve got four games left and they’re in a title challenge right now. So he wouldn’t really want to leave them right at this time.

Could they get an interim manager in place? It’s an issue to put somebody in there. They’ve got a big game this weekend, Dundee United coming to Ibrox, and if they lose that one, they’re even further away from the top.

They’ve got the under-19s manager as the interim guy in charge right now. So could they wait another month for a Kevin Muscat if these sort of things go on? It does seem they weren’t prepared to have somebody step in after they fired Russell Martin.

Rangers linked with former West Ham boss

Slaven Bilic has been linked with the manager’s job at Rangers in recent days, and is another one who could potentially be rivalling Muscat.

Bilic
Credit: Getty

The former West Ham boss, who has been out of work since leaving Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Fateh in August 2024, has now emerged as a key contender.

Bilic was an option for West Ham in their attempts to replace Graham Potter, hinting that he was eager to get back into management.

However, he missed out on a surprise return to the London Stadium when they opted to appoint Nuno Espirito Santo, who controversially left Nottingham Forest earlier this season.

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