Looks like Boyd IS away

[Gazza_8 233]

I will wait and see but if this happens and we sell our best players and replace them with nothing better (or more likely probably nothing) then the fans have to unite and do something against this repugnant chairman of ours. If he does not leave soon I am thinking for the first time since I have been going to watch our famous team not to bother going back as I don't see the point with him in charge if this is road he is taking us down!!!

 

I know how you feel mate. I gave my season ticket up after 14 years when Smith came back to manage us. I felt then it was a backwards step and it looks like I was right!

 

I wouldn't spend my hard earned wages on a season ticket when we're getting nothing back in return!

[pete 2,499]

I totally agree it is the state the club is in that is the important thing. Selling Murray park would not be the answer and a very short term fix. The rich Rangers supporters will not put any money into the club as long as David Murray is in charge. As for Gerssave getting 60mill from ordinary working guys who struggle to make ends meet is an impossible dream. And even if anyone can bring in 60mill he will need many million more to get the club running again.

As Frankie says we are in a downward spiral and god knows where the bottom lies.

[pete 2,499]

Darrell King

THE immediate impact of Kris Boyd's expected departure from Rangers centres on what impact losing their top goalscorer will have on the chances of stopping Celtic winning yet another SPL championship.

 

But today, as many disillusioned supporters attempt to get their heads round the potential sale of another key player at a crucial stage of the season, maybe they have stopped dead in their tracks.

 

Maybe they looked beyond today, even tomorrow and well into the future.

 

And staring back at them is a doomsday picture, something they never felt would unfold, a major question that there doesn't appear a quick answer to.

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Just what does the long- term future hold for Rangers Football Club?

 

Underpinned by the powerful financial muscle of Sir David Murray for the past two decades, this latest episode concerning Boyd is rightly being looked at by some as a watershed moment in the club's history.

 

Saddled with debts touching �£22million and with bankers worldwide getting twitchy as the global credit crunch continues to bite, Rangers will apparently let the man who has scored 91 goals in three seasons join Birmingham for close to �£4m.

 

Has this move been borne out of absolute necessity to ease the weight of the overdraft?

 

That would certainly seem to be the case, as it would appear there is no other logical reason for moving on your top scorer in the midst of a title battle that has such grand prizes.

 

Most notable among them is direct Champions League qualification, the absence of which has undoubtedly contributed to the cash-strapped situation the Ibrox club find themselves in today.What other club second in their league, with five points to make up on the leaders and plenty of game-time left, would consider selling a man who has kept them alive in the race?

 

These questions, until answered clearly, will only lead to conjecture that a serious downturn in revenue streams has led to some of the family jewels being for sale.

 

Boyd may not be the last to go in this window if he does agree to rejoin his old manager Alex McLeish in the Midlands.

 

There has always been a feeling that football is immune to the financial ills of the outside world, that clubs were untouchable due to their status as institutions and integral parts of everyday life.

 

But when Wall Street banks tumble and major high street retailers teeter on the brink, maybe time is now being called on that extra breathing space afforded to clubs in this country.

 

It is not inconceivable that events in this window, while out of the hands of a beleaguered Walter Smith, will be dictated by financial demands rather than football demands.

 

And therein lies this watershed moment for a support who, having seen the likes of Jean-Alain Boumsong, Alan Hutton and Carlos Cuellar head south for big bucks in recent times, have been accustomed to the tag of Rangers now being a selling club, an outfit where the balance sheet is more important than the team sheet.

 

For all his critics and failings, the absence of Boyd - who has scored 20 goals so far this term - will be huge in the second half of the season.

 

In the best form of his life - a year ago fans would have danced around Ibrox if a �£3.75m fee had come in for the 25-year-old - Boyd is a goal machine, a player who was going to be absolutely crucial to any chance of wresting the league crown from Celtic.

 

With him gone, many will feel that any hope of the SPL has gone also. These decisions, without doubt, do not sit well with supporters.

 

Rangers' troubles can be traced back, ironically, to the time of the aforementioned Cuellar. The Spaniard failed to feature in their Kaunas calamity, which saw a �£10m- plus black hole appear when they crashed out of Europe.

 

His sale almost instantly after that Lithuanian shambles caused uproar, and Murray was forced into a corner in such a way as never before.

 

The support was on the verge of complete revolt; out of Europe and their Player of the Year sold to Aston Villa for �£8m just a week into the new season.

 

Murray's response was not to bank the Cuellar cash to offset the loss, but to spend it right away on Pedro Mendes, Steven Davis and Mo Edu.

 

At the time, he had no option as a lack of investment would have seen many turn away for good. It was a risk too far.

 

But much has changed around the world since August, and with nothing coming into the coffers and the debt more than likely edging upwards from the posted June 30 figure of �£22m, something has had to give.

 

Madjid Bougherra, Nacho Novo, Barry Ferguson and Mendes were all linked with departures in the past fortnight, as Smith attempted to stave off the nightmare scenario of losing key men while keeping a challenge on track.

 

He has a raft of deadwood that he'd like to shift. But there have been no takers, and no desire from these players on meaty contracts to leave unless their terms were paid up.

 

When the first Birmingham bid landed, Smith must have winced. It appears Rangers are in no position to resist if the money hits the right levels, and that in itself may encourage other predators to swoop for the rest of Smith's saleable assets.

 

A weakened team is unlikely to overcome Celtic, and second place again will lead to entry into a revamped Champions League qualification scenario that will see major players from Portugal, Holland and Russia lie in wait for a place in the group stages.

 

The piercing cold of winter has set in for Rangers fans, and Smith. And also the chill of fear, fear that this club is now possibly tumbling down a very dangerous road ...

 

I was already depressed now i am glad i am going to work for the first time in my life.

[johnnyk 158]

KRIS BOYD'S departure from Rangers won't spark a fire sale of their top stars during the current transfer window.

 

The Ibrox striker is weighing up the option of joining former manager Alex McLeish at Birmingham City as the two clubs edge closer to agreeing a �£3.75million deal for the man who has netted 20 goals this season.

 

But supporters fearing Boyd will be joining a host of other key players such as captain Barry Ferguson, Pedro Mendes, Steven Davis and Madjid Bougherra in quitting the club this month can rest easy.

 

SportsTimes understands there will be no financial necessity for manager Walter Smith to lose any more of his top talents during the current transfer, window providing the sale of Boyd goes through as expected this week.

 

advertisementIt's believed the Ibrox club have been forced to try and generate �£3m this month to help balance the books during the current credit crunch and had braced themselves for having to accept the first decent offer for one of their leading players.

 

Now, though, any future decisions to sell players will be made on football grounds rather than financial ones and Smith has been assured he won't be forced to rip his team apart further.

 

Of course, if an offer is tabled for a player that is too good to turn down - such as the �£9m fee Spurs made for Alan Hutton this time last year - then Smith will be forced to consider it.

 

An Ibrox source confirmed: "The situation is simply enough - a certain amount of money had to be raised during the transfer window which meant a player with a transfer value of around �£3m would have to be sold.

 

"It basically meant that every single player was available for transfer for the right price but it just so happened Kris Boyd was the first player to bid for.

 

"It's impossible to turn the offer down in case no further bids are made for the other players who have been linked with moves.

 

"Providing Kris agrees to join Birmingham, and the two clubs agree a fee, then Rangers will be in exactly the same position they were in previously which is money will be tight but there is no need to sell unless they feel it's too good to turn down.

 

"So the other players linked with transfers - Ferguson, Mendes and Bougherra - don't have to be sold. If they do go, it won't be to balance the books."

 

Chairman David Murray confirmed that the club will allow Boyd to open talks with Birmingham if they two clubs agree a fee.

 

It's thought an initial bid of around �£3m has been rejected but an increase of �£750,000 would see the deal go through.

 

That extra sum would cover the 20% sell-on clause with Kilmarnock and leave Rangers clearing the required �£3m. And Murray said: "Birmingham have made an enquiry.

 

"We talked about money but we haven't agreed a fee."

 

Newcastle United are believed to be interested in Ferguson, although Rangers still insist no contact has been made.

 

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/display.var.2479833.0.0.php

[Gazza_8 233]

The fee is a fuckin' joke too!

[carldvelle 0]

David - Here ye go Dermot, have a 4th on me.

 

Dermot- Why tanks Dave.

 

David- Dont mention it Dermot, us billionaires have got to stick together, eh Dermot.

 

Dermot - To be sure Dave, to be sure.

[Bluedell 5,574]

David - Here ye go Dermot, have a 4th on me.

 

Dermot- Why tanks Dave.

 

David- Dont mention it Dermot, us billionaires have got to stick together, eh Dermot.

 

Dermot - in your dreams Dave, in your dreams.

Correct made.

[carldvelle 0]

Thank you for the correction:thup:

[Cotter 0]

After the initial shock and depression of this revelation and what it means for the future of RFC in general, I must say that I remain unconvinced by Boyd as a player. He was pish against Celtic (hands up who REALLY thought he wouldn't be) and was back on his level scoring against ICT at the weekend there. The trouble is I have no faith whatsoever that WS could go out and get a real �£4m striker with the cash. I give you Kyle Lafferty. Will the cash be reinvested anyway? I doubt it.

 

Either way a revolt is on the cards, particularly if Barry goes. Then we'll have no "Rangers Men" left. The tims are fuckin lovin this.

 

BTW David Healy? GTF.

[H1ndy 0]

After the initial shock and depression of this revelation and what it means for the future of RFC in general, I must say that I remain unconvinced by Boyd as a player. He was pish against Celtic (hands up who REALLY thought he wouldn't be) and was back on his level scoring against ICT at the weekend there. The trouble is I have no faith whatsoever that WS could go out and get a real �£4m striker with the cash. I give you Kyle Lafferty. Will the cash be reinvested anyway? I doubt it.

 

Either way a revolt is on the cards, particularly if Barry goes. Then we'll have no "Rangers Men" left. The tims are fuckin lovin this.

 

BTW David Healy? GTF.

 

ur right. healy is a poor man's kris boyd, even lazier than boyd. he only seems to play well when play for NI.