Ally McCoist wouldn't be shocked if Rangers don't finish second in the Premiership

[ian1964 10,591]

ALLY MCCOIST insists it is not second or bust for Mark Warburton at Rangers this season.

 

And the former Ibrox boss admits he would not be shocked if the Light Blues failed to finish best of the rest in the Premiership.

 

It has been a lacklustre start to the campaign for Warburton’s side as they have fallen well off the pace being set by Celtic at the top of the table.

 

The Gers head into their clash with Dundee tomorrow third in the standings and in desperate need of an improved run of form to ease the pressure at Ibrox.

 

But Light Blue legend McCoist believes expectations should be lowered as the rebuilding work continues in the coming months.

 

He said: “No, would you? Would anyone be shocked if Aberdeen finished second?

 

“I think there is too much made of budgets. When 11 line up against 11 you don’t think about budgets. You just think about your job.

 

“I get it that if you’ve got a bigger budget you should be able to get a higher calibre of player. Of course I understand that.

 

“But Aberdeen have been solidly Scotland’s second best team for the last two seasons and I don’t think that’s going to change because they’ve got a good solid base and a good manager.

 

“The team knows what it’s about. Hearts have done exceptionally well. They went into administration and benefited from going down and rebuilding and coming back up.

 

“I always felt that these clubs would certainly be in or around Rangers unless Rangers spent a lot of money – and that Aberdeen would be potentially be better. So it would not be surprising if Aberdeen finished second.

 

“I don’t think [it is second or bust]. I think some people might think that. I think second would be a good achievement actually but I don’t think it’s second or bust. I certainly don’t think anyone should be losing their job if they finish in the top four.

 

“My own opinion at the start of the season was I would like to have thought Rangers could compete with Hearts and Aberdeen and possibly be slightly better than St Johnstone.”

 

Warburton added 11 players to his Ibrox squad this summer as he prepared for the Gers’ return to the Premiership.

 

Few of his recruits have hit the ground running this term as the Light Blues have found the going tough in the first few months of the campaign.

 

But McCoist is confident the Gers will finally click as they look to climb the top flight standings in the coming weeks.

 

He said: “It’s always a concern because as a manager you live or die by your signings. But I do still think it’s a little early.

 

“I think the football team will be developing over the next 18 months or so. I don’t have any doubt about that.

 

“I don’t know but they will probably strengthen in the next couple of windows. There will be changes, definitely.

 

“But there have been no absolute standouts. I get that.

 

“The Barton thing hasn’t work out. Kranjcar has been really unlucky, Rossiter is injured again. These are hard luck stories.

 

“But you do get judged on your signings and I would be hopeful that one or two others would step up and start playing consistently well.”

 

With their title dreams dashed, Rangers must now look to finish in second spot this term and prove that they are on the right track on Warburton’s watch.

 

The Englishman has been bemused by some of the comments directed towards his side this season but McCoist knows it is all part of the game at Ibrox.

 

He said: “I think we are all in agreement that if you are an Old Firm manager, a manager at any level but particularly an Old Firm manager, you are generally gauged on your opposition.

 

“If you are doing better than your opposition you will be winning things and if you are not then you won’t be.

 

“Listen, Mark is an intelligent man and he certainly knows now, he has got Davie who would definitely know, that the level of criticism and expectation certainly won’t decrease.

 

“It’s one of the things that is guaranteed in football management, particularly at the Old Firm.”

 

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/14913699.Ally_McCoist_wouldn_t_be_shocked_if_Rangers_don_t_finish_second_in_the_Premiership/

[MacK1950 2,278]

Tend to agree that he could be correct but time will tell.

[RANGERRAB 3,397]

For MW's sake I hope McCoist is wrong. I don't think hertz or aberdeen are good sides. Second should be achievable but a EL place is a must.

 

However at least we're at the top end of the table. If McCoist were still in charge we'd probably still be stuck in the Championship

[Tannochsidebear 2,346]

So said the man who said, early into the 14-15 season, that he didnt care if we won the Championship or not as long as we went up. Seems his standards as a manager are being matched as a pundit. It amazes me that a player who would never accept second best at anything has changed to this "mediocre is ok" kind of guy. Sad.

[Uilleam 5,664]

Should have gone to Weight Watchers.

[pj_1872 0]

"Hearts have done exceptionally well. They went into administration and benefited from going down and rebuilding and coming back up."

 

Ehh aye I totally agree Ally so why the feck didn't you do the same instead of buying cribari, ageryou, sandaza, kyle (I could go on)???

[the gunslinger 3,366]

A joke of a manager. Not sure I'd ascribe any weight to what he says.

 

 

[Uilleam 5,664]

A joke of a manager. Not sure I'd ascribe any weight to what he says.

 

Even if he said it with his "serious face" on?

[Uilleam 5,664]

And here he is, in today's Sunday Times

 

Perhaps file under 'Not Sure If Serious'......

 

FOOTBALL

McCoist looking to manage again — but no ‘basket cases’

Former Rangers boss says he has no regrets accepting the job in 2011. By Douglas Alexander

 

Douglas Alexander

November 20 2016, 12:01am,

The Sunday Times

 

McCoist wants to make a return to management in either England or the United States, but the former Rangers boss has ruled out taking on another “basket case” club after more than three years of dealing with the financial crisis at Ibrox.

 

The 54-year-old revealed he was in the running for the Queens Park Rangers job before Ian Holloway’s appointment last week, yet admits he has been warned off other managerial roles south of the border. “A few other jobs have come up, but, just after I expressed an interest, people got in touch to tell me not to go near it with a bargepole. I’m not going to take anything for the sake of it. There’s no point me moving my family down the road to be back up in three months.

 

“If something comes up, brilliant, I’d love to do it. It’s what I want to do, but I’m in a fortunate position in that I can do some punditry and I have other business interests, which I’m keen to work on. I’m looking at England but there are one or two things going on in America which I’d seriously consider as well.

 

“It’s pointless going to a basket case club like Coventry City. [Former managers] Tony Mowbray and Steven Pressley warned me against that.

 

“At Rangers, there wasn’t a scenario I didn’t have to deal with. Sir David Murray said to me, ‘We still don’t know if you can manage, but we know you can crisis manage’. That’s as near a compliment as I’ll get from him. It was a bizarre time at Rangers, with some of the goings on. I don’t think we’ll ever see that again. It was incredible.”

 

Yet despite his managerial reputation suffering, McCoist insists he has no regrets about accepting the chance to succeed Walter Smith in 2011. “I don’t regret it at all. It’s the opposite actually. I’m quite happy that I took it because I’m not sure what would have happened if someone else had. It wasn’t the best time, but I was happy to take it. I don’t know if someone could have done the same job, but I wouldn’t have liked to take that chance and find out.”

 

While McCoist said last week that Rangers might have to settle for finishing third behind Aberdeen this season, Smith believes they will finish second and said Mark Warburton will also have to provide evidence he can close the gap on Celtic in the second half of the season.

 

“I’d hope they’d do well enough to finish second and I think they will. That’s the proving ground this season, but they have to show through performances they’re getting closer to Celtic and that with a bit more investment they can put in a legitimate challenge. In Scotland, I think Rangers are still the only team that can put in a legitimate challenge to Celtic, but it will take a settling-in period and that is this season.”

 

Warburton, meanwhile, believes Lee Wallace, his captain, has made a claim to be Scotland’s left-back ahead of Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney. The Rangers manager was at Wembley last weekend to watch Wallace perform well in Scotland’s 3-0 defeat by England. “I thought in a positive way he gave Gordon [strachan] a selection problem,” he said. “He’s probably forsaken his international career with Rangers going down and back up again, but I thought he stepped in well.

 

“He’s a very modest guy, but I’d turn round to him and tell him he’s got to say that he’s given Gordon a problem. He was an attacking threat, he got down the left-hand side, giving one-twos and putting balls in the box. He’s shown Gordon that, whenever called upon, he’s ready.”

 

Warburton now wants the likes of Andy Halliday, Jason Holt and Danny Wilson to join Wallace and Barrie McKay in Strachan’s squad and increase Rangers’ representation. “I got a bit frustrated when the squad was announced a few weeks ago and someone asked if Lee was up to it,” he added. “He’s the Rangers captain, so of course he is. A few years ago, the Scotland squad was packed with Rangers players. That’s something we have to get back to, but it’s a building process.”

 

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/scotland/mccoist-looking-to-manage-again-but-no-basket-cases-j23kbw5n3

[Norris Cole 0]

Having not watched them since 2012, it could have been a case of them having an off-day, but Aberdeen were junk when we played them this season. Aimless hoofs up the park and very little else.