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Really interesting article and thread, love this type of debate on this board. Personally I am not ready to join the sack him movement just yet. 8 wins out of 10, no defeats domestically outwith them, these are title winning credentials, and all with a broken squad of patched up soldiers and many injuries, plus some who have not managed to reach previous levels, yet. Unbeaten in domestic cups also, something SG couldnt manage. Yes the football is not much to watch, but give me a dire winning team over an entertaining defeat every time. Gio has also shown he can learn from mistakes, ditching the bottle-merchant keeper and the zonal defence from his early season mission. I give him some credit for that. My biggest issue is who brings in the players? Is Gio the only Dutch manager in history to have 2 windows and not bring in any Dutch players or players from a previous club/league? I find that very strange. If Wilson is doing all the player trading and Gio is just there to coach, then it is surely more important to get rid of Wilson before January than Gio?

I'm not going to go out to bat for GvB but the crisis lies mainly within the playing squad. You can talk all day about how we got here but pragmatism dictates it is what it is and the only issue is where do we go from here. Changing the coaching staff won't necessarily rescue this season but it might sink it altogether. Sacking GvB and keeping the players wont solve what's wrong at Rangers. There are clearly changes necessary among the playing staff and that is primarily the responsibility of Ross Wilson. If players need released or sold or loaned out or replaced then it's his job to get it done, albeit after consultation with the coaches.

Point 1 - so what? King is sniping because he wants his money back and there's been a fall-out along the way but that's always going to happen with business owners with massive egos. Point 2 - do we know that for sure? If he had been able to spend more, would he have turned down the AV job? I doubt it. Point 3 - One director has resigned over the past couple of years, and he previously resigned and came back. That happens all the time when businessmen feel they can't contribute meaningfully due to time. I'm not sure what the issue is. Points 4-7 - the board talked to a party who expressed interest in the club and then said no. Again, it'll be something that happens all the time, and we mostly wouldn't hear about it. We heard about it this time due to the behaviour of third party acting in an amateurish way. Hardly the fault of the board. We didn't lose in the US courts, did we? Point 8 - the board may be safeguarding the financial stability of the club over the next 5 years, and if so, can we criticise after what happened under Murray? Points 9-10 - not sure about the relevance of these points, but everyone agrees that things around the club can be improved, but it hardly that things stink. As you say, not much going on in isolation but even looking at them all, I can't get excited about them.

We won't know until it happens unfortunately. Anything else is guesswork (on both sides of the argument). Theoretically, we could play terrible and continue to defeat the SPFL clubs outwith Celtic, then show up twice and defeat them. That would secure the league title. Outwith OF games, Gio has the best record of all recent Rangers managers, so in theory all that is missing, is beating them. Would there be any justification to sack a manager who won you the league no matter how "dire", or otherwise, the performances were?

I'm hoping the WC will derail any momentum the Tims have and in turn will give us time to reset and get viable options back in the squad. A fit Goldson, Hagi, Roofe and Lawrence will undoubtedly make a difference to our options for the 2nd half of the season. This however is dependent on being within touching distance to them.

Gio record doesn’t tell the whole story. He doesn’t have what it takes in the league. I think we are looking at handing them another title and free access to the Champions League. Many of us had worries about his track record and although at times he has proved us wrong, he generally hasn’t. The football we play is every bit as dull and predictable as it was at Feyenoord. We should be speaking to guys with a good track record who are looking to take the next step like Knutsen.

If he succeeds at QPR he gets a better offer than Rangers can afford. If he fails at QPR, Rangers shouldn’t be giving him a job.

I've been concerned for a while now about our medical side esoecially in regards to recovery times which appear to be frankly ridiculous.

Bring him home.

2 points off the leaders after 10 games, qualification to CL secured and now into semi-final of the League Cup. Have we sacked a manager previously who could claim the above? We often say that player wise, you build from a position of strength, but with managers it's the opposite. Gio has the look and sound of a beaten man, but what are the alternatives? Would any other manager be able to get any better out of an aging, out of form and injury ravaged squad? We missed the boat after 55 and appear to be unable to release the funds required to add genuine quality to the squad and changing manager won't solve that issue.

I am 100% behind Gio. He cannot kick the ball for these old, inconsistant, oft injured players. Some find his demeanor with the press too laid back. He cannot be without the necessary teeth in the dressing room. He captained the Dutch squad to runners up in the 2010 World Cup when it included characters like Van Bommel, Kuyt, Sneijder, Van Perise & DeJong. On talksport yesterday Neil Warnock stated that he thought that Gerrard was under the belief that he got out of Rangers at the right time. What does that say for what Gio was coming in to. The director of football role is something I would be more likely to point the finger at. The strategy & direction the club is moving in should be relayed to us the fans. The transfers have also been questionable to say the least.

I suspect thats still in the post then.

This is to do with behaviour at the away game at Anfield only.

Will it, though? They provide better quality than most other sides in the league, which will be enough most of the time, but it'll still be the same boring football that will come unstuck eventually, and won't allow us to overcome 'better' sides (i.e. Them).

It's hard not to think about what a terrific header of the ball he was and link it to the dreadful battle he had with dementia these last few years. A hell of a price to pay.

I agree about Europe in particular and I will forever be grateful for what SG did as part of our rebuild, winning #55 and making us a real force to be reckoned with in Europe. But he wasn't perfect. I think his reputation is growing with every passing month since he left, like one of those former players who isn't good enough to make it but becomes a world beater after he's gone. If he could have motivated the players a bit and sorted out the malaise which seemed to have set-in, I think he'd still be here and his managerial stock would be on the rise. That said, there's echoes of what's happening with this group of players this season, with what happened during the start to his last one.

And yet they have underachieved for, in my memory, 30 years. They’ve chewed through managers in that time ruining every single managers career, that’s 10 managers over 12 seasons. It’s a poisoned chalice for sure.

The football on show was of Rangers level dreich and dire he had to go .

Yeah, can't say I'm overly excited about travelling through tomorrow but at the very least it will be interesting to see how VAR works domestically...

With regards to injuries, Jack, Roofe, Helander and Souttar all had pretty poor injury records prior to joining Rangers.

Ach well. I can never really understand our support's constant desire to focus on the past. He had his time and left. I hope he does okay but won't lose any sleep over it, either way. And f*ck Liverpool.

I am assuming the £14K fine for the fireworks will be forwarded directly to the Union Bears? It was a pre-planned and co-ordinated display which they knew would lead to the club being fined. Why do that? Timmy behaviour.

Utterly sick of persisting with players who contribute next to nothing and leaving potential undeveloped on the bench. I'd go with ... Colak Sakala - Tillman - Wright Sands - Davis - Arfield Yilmaz - Davies - King - Divine McGregor

And that's a fair and valid point, but as is we keep getting same / more points than Celtic against the other SPL teams, then the league will be decided on the outcome of OF games. I can't see us beating them 3 times, so we'll need to outperform them in all other games to give us a buffer. Given where we are currently, there are valid arguments for and against Gios removal.

The perfect example was last season. We were ahead, feeling quite comfortable, but we were not playing that well; we were scraping past games. The xG showed that They were doing better and that they should be ahead. And, we know what happened.

I think that's still part of the mystery and tbh, also from Gerrard's time. But it would seem strange that Gio comes in and doesn't have guarantees about funds for fees and wages. When Gerrard went, was that because he didn't get the money he needed? Or was he told he had to get CL in order to get cash and/or sell someone to generate cash? Even if he was told the latter, I think he could have sold someone like Aribo/Kamara/Kent/Morelos and come out of it with enough money to fund a couple of players? I'm still skeptical about why he left. A bit of me still thinks he had no idea how to fix the issues on the pitch so took the easy way out and left.

That is a total myth IMO.

Done...

I disagree about Villa. They’ve got a name and a following and a bit of money. A Brummie Souness and Smith combination would transform them. SG’s managerial record is not a good one.

SG supposedly wanted to buy Kevin Nisbet from hibz. Hibz asking price was £4m. The board wouldnt back the move. think they got that one right

Malicious prosecution ?

It lightens my heart to know that those Rangers years will be the highlight of his managerial career. Rangers...the zenith. Now back in that commentator booth with ya Stevie! We need that keen managerial/player insight!

Her silent partner, and primary business associate. Mr. Montana is a successful Miami/Dade venture capitalist. His business interests range pharmaceutical manufacture, and importation, real estate acquisition, home security, and arms. Mr. Montana is a native of Guantanamo, Cuba.

Did he choose or was his hand forced???.

Not sure why anyone would trust foreign investors. There isn't much to be gained financially or otherwise in Scottish football, unless there's a rip off involved.

Last season for Rangers fans was very much one of ups and downs. From the incredible high of beating RB Leipzig to reach the Europa League final to the low of surrendering our league title to Celtic, it's fair to say 2021/22 was somewhat of a roller-coaster. However, finishing the season by beating Hearts in the Scottish Cup final - despite the pain of losing in Seville - pointed to a positive future with a squad who believed in their quality and were fit enough to compete on several fronts. With that in mind, fans were excited about the new season. Less European qualifiers were required, our transfer business was done before the competitive fixtures kicked off and aside from one or two areas of concern in the team, most fans felt we had squad more than capable of challenging Celtic for the title once again. By the end of August, that confidence remained fairly high - we'd qualified for the Champions League group stage (no small feat with a fine away win in Eindhoven) and were unlucky to drop points at Easter Road ; a match impacted by a red card that was later rescinded. Less than a week into September though, matters took a turn for the worse. Three quick-fire hammerings from Celtic, Ajax and Napoli with the loss of players to injury as well as the poor form of various others soon put a negative focus onto the manager and our style of play. At this point it's only fair to note that from the outset the appointment of Gio was one the fans knew would deliver a team conservative in style. 'Keep the Zero' was his mantra and even a Feyenoord supporting guest on our podcast acknowledged the defensive nature of his outlook where he liked his teams to control games as opposed to all-out attack. This had been noted during his first six months at Ibrox with some commentators noting this style worked well in Europe but could be less effective in the SPFL. However, it was also hoped a summer of coaching and new additions to his staff (both playing and off-the-field) would result in that balance being improved. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem to have happened. Indeed, at first glance further European defeats to Liverpool whilst maintaining a winning record domestically may suggest van Bronckhorst has erred in the wrong direction. Perhaps, instead of maintaining our competitiveness in Europe, he’s left us too open in such games in order for us to carry more of a threat into league matches? Unfortunately, that isn’t the case with our form against weaker opposition as much a concern of that against Europe’s elite. Valid reasons can explain our issues in Europe – the main one being the step up in class from the Europa League to the Champions League. For example, although our Euro wins last season remain impressive, those teams just weren’t on the same level as Liverpool, Ajax or an exciting Napoli side currently top of our group and Serie A. Add in issues with injuries and just some general poor form, accruing even a point from our section may prove beyond us. There’s no immediate shame in that. Even so, at the very least, we can expect a well-motivated, well-organised effort in such games. Yes, important players may miss out or one or two can play badly but aside from a reasonable first hour in the two home matches against Napoli and Liverpool, we simply haven’t turned up. Add in a dreadful display away to Union SG in the qualifiers, then the manager has to take ownership of our struggles which aren’t unique to the last few weeks. In general, though, I think it’s a valid point to separate our European and league efforts this season. In hindsight, qualifying for the CL was perhaps reward enough after reaching the Europa League final – certainly, it represents progress and will be one KPI the manager would be positively judged on. On the other hand our domestic form has to be viewed differently. Ironically, by and large, results have been fairly good with only five points dropped – two of which at Easter Road along with the defeat to Celtic at Parkhead.; neither of which are unsurprising or unexpected across our history. Goal difference is also reasonable; we’re scoring a fair amount and not conceding too many despite having issues at goalkeeper and defence. A cursory look at Gio’s win rate shows him as high as any Rangers manager even if his sample size is smaller compared to others. Overall, a neutral observer might wonder why so many fans are now calling for the manager to be sacked? Style of play and quality of performance therein are the main justifications. Despite that longer summer of pre-season preparation, the only tactical changes of note were to a disastrous zonal marking system (soon disposed of), the odd change to a back three in European games (equally less than successful) and using our full-backs inside of the winger (perhaps more down to our captain carrying an injury than a deliberate amendment). In fact, it’s not immediately discernible to much more informed tactical observers than me as to what our playing identity is. But there's certainly no tempo, minimal fluency and we carry a minimal attacking threat for long periods in most games. The oft talked about ‘horse-shoe’ recycling of possession is used in a negative sense to criticise our ponderous use of the ball and the manager’s preferences for two wingers and long diagonals long sussed out by opposition defences. Gio has also been very clear (or was initially) that he wouldn’t play with two strikers. This means our goal-scoring talisman of recent years has hardly got a look in this term. Add in other problems, such as the failure to strengthen in central midfield meaning we’re relying on Steven Davis, Scott Arfield and the perennially injured Ryan Jack and our decision to spend the thick end of £5m on a reserve Turkish left back means that any sympathy for our engine room issues are in short supply. To be fair to the manager, he’s not offered much excuses as to our bad form. After the team were jeered off against Dundee in the League Cup this week, he said he understood supporter frustration and that he and the players needed to do better. That’s a positive but, aside from injured players returning (Roofe might help and Lawrence definitely will), Gio is struggling to get any sort of tune out of his current players. It might only be October but ask a fan to name a player immune from criticism then they may struggle. Antonio Colak has scored goals and been an initial success but there are few others. If one or two players are off form, that can be blamed on those individuals, if the vast majority of the team are struggling, then there’s an obvious disconnect somewhere. Should the manager be sacked then? It’s somewhat of a cop out but I can’t see that happening right now even if it might be an inevitability. Rangers Football Club didn’t become Scotland’s most successful team by changing managers during difficult times – especially when they can point to a reasonable record results-wise over their first year in charge, including reaching a European final. As such, unless we go on a run of domestic losses before the World Cup break, it would be a big surprise to see us remove Gio before then (the final two CL results shouldn’t be factors). That will allow the manager to regroup and give him another four weeks to instil his vision into the squad. Players returning from injury will help but he’ll have another five games – including Hibs, Aberdeen and Celtic – to navigate successfully before the transfer window opens again in January. Do we really think we’ll win all our games between now and Celtic at Ibrox? I doubt many fans have confidence in such a run but the preferred alternative in replacing the manager is equally difficult to predict. As it stands there appears to be issues throughout the club. The Communications Director recently resigned, various scouts have gone and the Sporting Director has come under criticism for the status of the squad. No matter your opinion on these issues, it seems obvious that the squad will undergo further changes through the next 2-3 transfer windows. As such, do we believe Ross Wilson and Gio have the relationship to do that effectively on the limited budget we’re told we have? Or should someone else be brought in to make the kind of decisions will affect the club for the short and medium term? If so, who? Mick Beale has just turned down Wolves so will he really fancy the gamble of coming back to Ibrox? Which Scottish managers would we trust? Or can we find a left-field foreign appointment like Celtic to bring back excitement and success? Nothing is guaranteed regardless. To conclude, fifteen hundred words in and I’m afraid I’m no closer to a definitive answer to the article’s question. There’s no doubt we’re in difficult times but we’ve all been through worse. Yet this still seems to be a key juncture in the club’s immediate future. I won’t pretend to know the solution and, I would suggest when a team is being booed from the park after a win, then a change will surely be inevitable but I also don’t think the van Bronckhorst story at Rangers is finished yet. The next few weeks will tell us more. Let’s just hope the viewing in that time is better than we’ve seen in recent weeks. One thing is certain, it can’t be much worse.

That was soul destroying and that bad that Dundee looks the fitter team in the second half and was waiting for them scoring near the end to force extra time. I would lay most of the blame with the players for last nights lackluster performance. There is no way the manager sets the team up to play a dull boring passing game with no end product. Sure the manager lays out tactics but really what tactics do players need to beat a first division outfit? When the players step over the white line it's up to them to perform, not many did last night. They need to roll up their sleeves and leave everything on the pitch, every game, not many are even get close to acceptable. If they are not playing for the manager then i demand, as a paying fan, that they do it for me and every other fan who pays to watch and so far this season they are serving us up shite. I don't care what goes or going on behind the scenes, when it comes to match day give your fucking all.