Hildy
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Everything posted by Hildy
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What owner of the ones we have had - or are likely to have - would run Rangers as you would wish? We've had Murray, Whyte, Greenco and the current board calling the shots, and while David Murray did well for a time, it didn't end well. We might yet have King, who would probably keep McCoist. We could have had the Blue Knights, who would probably have kept McCoist. We could have had that chap from Hong Kong, who would probably have kept McCoist, of the American guys, who would probably have - you've guessed it - kept McCoist. Are you still surprised that some of us want fan ownership? It's the only way we can have a club that will operate as we want it to.
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I'm certainly not recommending it, but with the state of Scottish football and the condition of Rangers, it is the way the wind is blowing.
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I agree that our money should be better spent, but if the club struggles to compete with Celtic and watches as they do umpteen titles in a row, the option to unload a major asset will always be a topic that the club board returns to. Margins that are too tight for too long put quite a bit of strain on directors, and if there is an easy option that makes the short term much easier for them, it may well be chosen.
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I wonder what the cost will be to bring Ibrox back to an appropriate standard? In the last year or two, there have been rumours of £10m - £20m. With no CL windfall likely in the foreseeable future, the finances at Rangers are going to have to be meticulously examined, and it could be that a future board will decide to discard either Ibrox or Murray Park.
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Let's get one thing clear. If Rangers are not promoted this season, it will be the biggest onfield disaster we have ever known. Those who defend the manager know perfectly well, just as his critics do, that the club could do significantly better in this area and yet McCoist is still supported as though he is the right man to take us forward. He is defended because of what he did as a player. Even his most ardent fans struggle to make a case for him staying as a manager. If you back McCoist, and if you really can't make a reasonable case for backing him, you really have ask yourself if your loyalty to the man has overtaken your loyalty to the club. We can't afford to fail this season and yet we have retained the services of a manager that football just doesn't rate. I do not believe that there is any excuse for this.
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I seriously doubt that Rangers can have an expensively remunerated management team, leading employees earning inflated salaries topped up with substantial bonuses, the level of player required to operate as we would expect, and also retain, maintain and run both Ibrox Stadium and Murray Park. Even a trusted board will have a serious review to undertake - if we ever get one. Playing in Scotland and having three hurdles to negotiate before reaching the CL big money stage - if we succeed in the top tier - will mean very few windfalls to look forward to in the future. Something will have to give unless the club can find a way to compete in an environment that is far more financially rewarding than this one. There are going to be some very tough choices ahead of us.
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What makes you think that about Durrant and McDowall?
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Roughly translated - we thought you were an honourable club, but now we're having doubts. Please remind us just how honourable you really are. Celtic don't need to do anything but if they did agree to another game or let Legia advance, it would at least do their reputation a bit of good. Everyone knows that Legia trashed them. Everyone knows too that the rules have provided an unsatisfactory solution, completely at odds with UEFA's Fair Play ethos. This story has a bit to run. I await the next instalment with keen anticipation.
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He really needs to decide how he is going to spell heavyweight, George's name . . .
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None of us really know the people who pop up to take charge of the club. For some, there is immediate respect towards any new owner simply because he has taken the trouble to buy the club. He is trusted and defended immediately. For others, there is suspicion that dubious motives are the driving factor in any purchase of Rangers. For them, a new owner has to earn trust and respect, and this is both healthy and realistic. If Dave King buys Rangers, we at least know him a little and we also know that he is a Rangers fan. I'm not sure that he would run the club as I would want it run, but it would surely be in safer hands with him on board. How would he secure it for the future, though? Another sale in ten or twenty years could have us revisiting this crisis. I hope he understands that Rangers can no longer float on the open market. I hope that any King tenure is a repair and recovery job followed by the sale/transfer of the club to the support, possibly over a period of up to five years. This would stabilise Rangers and immortalise King. Will it happen? If King had bought Rangers ten years ago - no. Now, though, there's the faintest hope that he just might, but I'm certainly not banking on it. He might not even buy the club at all. We'll find out in due course.
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We are the same club that we always were - legally - but in our hearts, we know - something has changed. Rangers now is not the same as Rangers then, and no-one knows if there will be a Rangers tomorrow. We expect a board of non-Rangers fans to care? We expect faceless ownership to bother? Rangers fans have disconnected from the club in significant numbers and in the prevailing circumstances, how could they not? Ask any senior Rangers fan who remembers the fifties and sixties if this is the same club. Many old stagers will tell you bluntly that it is not. How many times have you heard it said - 'this is not the Rangers I grew up with'? How can Rangers be taken seriously by its fans when it is devoid of Rangers fans at boardroom level? How can the faceless ownership of the club be expected to address a situation that it doesn't understand - or want to understand? You know more about Rangers - your left pinkie knows more about Rangers - than the sum of all the leading lights who make all the important decisions at Rangers. This is where we are at. Rangers exists more within the support than in the Ibrox Stadium Boardroom, Blue Room or Trophy Room. We are the same club, and we are not the same club. The main body of the kirk is still here, but the church is crumbling and the minister has long since shot the craw.
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. . . is the right answer.
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It will be on the lips of many Celtic fans - they broke the rules - they deserve to be punished. Rules are rules! If it had been us, though, would you have wanted Rangers to be reinstated? Would the 'rules are rules' approach have been yours, too? Rules are essential for civilised society and formal sport, but sometimes their application leads to injustice. Celtic's reinstatement will not generally be viewed as fair, but there is so much at stake, Celtic will likely grab the opportunity to stay in the competition, and this hardly makes them unique. Be honest, if you perceive injustice here, and want the situation resolved more fairly, would you be making the same argument if Rangers had benefited in similar fashion?
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That seems to make sense. I wonder - would the administration people at the club have done this thinking that they were being cute, and would the manager have been in on it, or did someone just look at the squad and name 25 available players perfectly innocently? I know you don't know, but what's your best guess?
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Why would any successful businessman want a controlling stake in Rangers? People sometimes forget - successful business people often see and exploit what the rest of us can't see. That doesn't mean that I believe Soros is Ibrox-bound, but because you/we might not see a reason to buy into Rangers, it doesn't mean that there isn't one.
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Is it not something like 'away goals count double in the event of a tie'?
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The rules may indeed be quite clear, but an appeal for a more lenient punishment is perfectly reasonable here. If this happened to a major Spanish club, I fully expect a way to be found not to have them suffer on the park, but instead have them pay a fine. And there would not be any uproar at such a decision. Rules should be challenged when they appear to support injustice. This rule is in place for good reason, but it is making a farce of UEFA's fair play ethos. People want natural justice to prevail. This rule is standing in the way of that outcome. Football fans don't want emphatic triumphs overturned because of an administrative error that is unlikely to be construed as an attempt to cheat or gain an advantage. They just want to see the better team being rewarded by advancement in the competition.
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Would there be uproar if Real Madrid or Barcelona did what Legia did - and received a fine as a punishment?
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If we were in Celtic's position, and I know that money is hugely important in football these days, especially at Rangers, I would not want to be reinstated. When you get roundly gubbed, as Celtic were, there is no real satisfaction in being reinstated. Just embarrassment tinged with guilt.
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UEFA makes a big deal about fair play. Rules or no rules, this decision goes against the fair play ethos in the eyes of most football fans. To stick slavishly to the rule is against the interests of UEFA and its fair play initiative. Most football fans would not expect to see Real Madrid or Barcelona dismissed like this. They want merit to win the day over maladministration. Legia is going to appeal and they certainly have a reasonable case for leniency to be applied.
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Now why would he do that?
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A definite possibility. If King has indicated or even hinted at purchasing a major stake in the club, this would be the next move. Or maybe Green really does want to come back. He missed out on sacking Ally last time. Maybe he feels that he has unfinished business.
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Another game live on television. At least the commentary won't be objectionable, or if it is, we'll never know.
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Rangers is the story that keeps on giving. BBC Scotland should commission a new soap opera about a football club. It could be called 'Edmiston Drive'. The plot lines would have to be convincing, though, unlike the reality we are living through.
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Celtic should contact Legia and request that they appeal this verdict. Celtic should then support Legia's appeal. UEFA might not change anything, but Celtic would be seen to be acting honourably. Or Legia could get reinstated and Celtic would look good for backing them. As things stand, Celtic looks like an imposter in the next round to football people, but they could, if they play it right, come out of this with their reputation enhanced.