Is the Warburton magic starting to fade?

[Norris Cole 0]

The Barton business is causing me to have doubts. Not the indefinite suspension- I suspect Barton is an indefinite offender - but the signing. If Warburton wanted him I reckon that shows poor judgement of the player and the man. If somebody else wanted him, why did MW agree?

 

There is history of good man managers coping with problem children. Walter with Gazzza, Stein with Willie Hamilton. I don't know if MW is good at man management but Barton is a problem adult, not a problem child and I suspect is beyond management.

 

Barton is basically a man child. But in fairness to Warburton, if ever there was a time in Joey Barton's career to take a punt on him it was the summer. After the way he led Burnley to the EPL, he genuinely seemed to have turned a corner. It was always a risky signing, but one worth taking IMO, even if it hasn't paid off. You win some, you lose some. In a parallel universe, Gascoigne got binned by Rangers after 5 games and Barton became a club legend. A Joey Barton without demons would've been a huge player for us in our current situation.

[craig 5,199]

I really like Warburton but the way he handled the whole Barton situation - made me start to question if he has the character to be a Rangers manager.

 

Walter Smith would have punished Barton and welcomed him back into the fold but the whole indefinite suspension strikes me as petty.

 

I never saw the game yesterday as my wife and I were welcoming our first son into the world however when I read the teamsheet I was baffled by the selection.

 

Could the change of formation be a result of the reported "debate" at training? Was the change in formation a managerial decision or was he pressured into it by the players?

 

I still think we have enough in the locker to finish second (by some distance I may add) but with no Kranjcar or Barton in the foreseeable future we have no quality players that can help us push Celtic this season.

 

 

Congratulations my friend. May all your son's hopes, dreams and wishes come true

[MacK1950 2,376]

Let's see how the next few games go but like Boabie I have maintained a top 6 is a must and top 3 a bonus.

I believe that decisions on signings etc. are made at board level to oversee costs and although MW can be assumed to identify signings it is then out of his hands.

Regards potential managers we should not be going down that road for at least two years.

[craig 5,199]

The reaction has been quite depressing. Did most really think we'd be competing with Celtic for the title this year?

 

As I said on another thread, our performance against them in April actually hindered us.

 

Our fans, and probably our Board too, felt that we were already close to them such that not much needed to be spent to compete. But, similar to ourselves the previous year, they went out and replaced their manager who has provided an immediate improvement in results, fitness, performance - our Board, and most of our fans if we are honest (myself included), felt that because we beat them on penalties that we could compete with them, and challenge them, over the course of a season. Rodgers arrival has shown that you don't always need to change the playing personnel but that a change in manager who has the dressing room can bring a new-found appetite and hunger for the game.

 

April, like it or not, was a false dawn for us. The quicker we see it and the quicker we accept it, the better it will be for us as we move forward together looking to challenge.

[craig 5,199]

Barton is basically a man child. But in fairness to Warburton, if ever there was a time in Joey Barton's career to take a punt on him it was the summer. After the way he led Burnley to the EPL, he genuinely seemed to have turned a corner. It was always a risky signing, but one worth taking IMO, even if it hasn't paid off. You win some, you lose some. In a parallel universe, Gascoigne got binned by Rangers after 5 games and Barton became a club legend. A Joey Barton without demons would've been a huge player for us in our current situation.

 

I think we are, to an extent, doing Warburton a disservice here too. From everything we are told he did his homework with Barton knowing his previous. And yet everyone he spoke to made glowing references about Barton having grown up and matured.

 

There is only so much due diligence a manager can do into a player before he has to make a decision on whether to take him on or not.

 

Given what he did for Burnley last season, and given that even his then boss Sean Dyche said he was terrific to have around the place, it was almost a no-brainer to sign a player of that caliber on a free transfer.

 

Now we have some saying that Warburton's man-management is lacking. Not sure how you can deduce that - none of us know what really went on and, if Barton really did have a right good go at the manager, then he has to go. Funnily enough, if Warburton had issued him with the week's suspension and then welcomed him back into the fold there would also be plenty who would complain that Warburton was too weak. Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

[boabie 230]

Let's see how the next few games go but like Boabie I have maintained a top 6 is a must and top 3 a bonus.

I believe that decisions on signings etc. are made at board level to oversee costs and although MW can be assumed to identify signings it is then out of his hands.

Regards potential managers we should not be going down that road for at least two years.

 

To clarify Mac - I was saying a top 6 was the best we could hope for. Not that we'd finish 6th , but that that's all we would get.

If some of those we signed recently shook off whatever niggles they have or quite simply gave themselves a shake and produced what we expected, we may even get a top 3. But nothing I've seen so far suggests a punt on it. Even worse, some of last years star players look to be going off the boil at the same time.

[Frankie 8,562]

Cheers guys! Hopefully see you guys again soon!

 

Welcome any time mate!

[RANGERRAB 3,664]

To clarify Mac - I was saying a top 6 was the best we could hope for. Not that we'd finish 6th , but that that's all we would get.

If some of those we signed recently shook off whatever niggles they have or quite simply gave themselves a shake and produced what we expected, we may even get a top 3. But nothing I've seen so far suggests a punt on it. Even worse, some of last years star players look to be going off the boil at the same time.

 

The minimum requirement is top 3 to get into the EL. Anything else totally unacceptable

[SteveC 150]

Congratulations my friend. May all your son's hopes, dreams and wishes come true

 

Same from me - all the very best to you & your family!

[les186 271]

The minimum requirement is top 3 to get into the EL. Anything else totally unacceptable

 

Agreed. Hearts after promotion last season made it to third and were challenging Aberdeen most of the season.