ian1964

I know,I just said so

THE Chairman of the Club has written the following open letter to all Rangers supporters: To all Rangers supporters, I write to you today to address a number of key issues facing the Club. First, I would like to address specifically the latest attempt to undermine Rangers in today's Daily Record which devotes five pages to trashing our efforts to get this Club back on a sensible financial footing. In the most lurid terms, the Record accuses the Club's management and, specifically me, of using supporters' money to help fund the buy-out of Rangers. Not true. The Club is accused of not paying £5million in VAT. Not true. I can categorically assure supporters that when I launched a takeover bid for the Club it was funded entirely from one of my companies and that was demonstrated clearly to the satisfaction of the previous owner, Lloyds Banking Group and professional advisers. What is true is that Rangers, like many other clubs, has a financing arrangement in place with a company called Ticketus which enables the Club to receive revenue from a portion of season ticket sales in advance. There is nothing unusual or untoward in this arrangement which was put in place at the Club long before my takeover last year and was used by the previous management. For members of that regime to criticise the use of a scheme they put in place is, frankly, outrageous. This is a perfectly straightforward way of raising working capital for the Club. Money from season ticket sales goes directly to the Club and is used for the Club's operations and that remains the case. In effect, all this financing arrangement does is release the revenue to the Club earlier. The Daily Record's approach to this story sought to distort and dramatise the matter. I for one will not be reading or buying the Daily Record again and I'm sure many other Rangers fans will share my disgust at yet another smear on this football club. It was, predictably, fuelled by accusations of former board members of the Club. I simply ask Rangers fans what these men did for Rangers in the Club's hour of need? They were all talk and no action and presided over the Club as it careered to the brink of financial collapse. The overarching issue that affects Rangers financially is the HMRC tax tribunal, which has been hanging over the Club for many years and long before I became chairman. As I have said many times before, the sooner that is resolved the better. In terms of the playing squad, you may know the Club has agreed a fee with Everton for the transfer of Nikica Jelavic. We wish the player well and thank him for his contribution to Rangers. The reality of Jelavic's departure is two-fold. One, the player wanted to leave and there is no point in trying to keep a player who no longer wants to be at Ibrox. Two, the Club is simply not in a financial position to turn down offers for players which give the Club a good return on its original investment. Investment in the playing squad has been a thorny issue since I took over the Club in May and is the source of endless debate, much of it ill-informed. I want to set the record straight. In the summer transfer window last year we conducted 14 different pieces of transfer business, more than any other club in Scotland. This included new signings and improvement to existing contracts with key players, increasing the players' wage bill significantly. We now have a first team squad of 30 which includes 18 full internationalists. Admittedly, there were transfer targets we did not secure but that is not uncommon. As chairman, I have supported Ally McCoist in his choice of targets and will continue to do so. The timing of Jelavic's departure so late in this window is far from ideal and efforts to improve the squad will continue until the transfer window closes. That said, we must be realistic. Media coverage of the transfer window has bordered on the hysterical. As it stands at the moment Rangers has operating costs of approximately £45 million a year and revenues of around £35million - not including revenue from possible Champions' League and Europa League participation. As we know, European money cannot be taken for granted and it doesn't take much to work out that without it there is a big financial hole to fill every year - regardless of who owns the Club. I've said many times that in Scottish football we have to move on from this mindset that you have to keep spending more and more money - that's what got this Club into financial trouble before. We have to live within our means, continue to develop talent and spend wisely. These are challenging financial times for Rangers - as they are for many other businesses. What I can say to you as a Rangers fan is that everything I will do as chairman will be in the interests of the Club and I thank you for your continued support. Craig Whyte, Chairman http://www.rangers.co.uk/news/football-news/article/2594589

Same old BHEASTS trying to sign any Rangers targets,you'd almost think they just sign them to stop us from signing them,a trait they have been doing for a while now and still not a league title to show for their efforts.

STV Scott: Norwich boss Paul Lambert says none of his key players will be leaving the club in this window - including Grant Holt via STVRaman.

rossdunbar93 Ross Dunbar by GersnetOnline Just to confirm, Jamie Ness hasn't gone out on loan to Ross County. (Source: G.Smith) 5 minutes ago

STV Grant: To kill a rumour before it properly surfaces, Fulham striker Marcello Trotta will not be moving to Rangers on loan. A deal isn't possible as he has already played for two clubs this season. Live updates here: http://sport.stv.tv/football/scottish-premier/295563-scottish-transfer-deadline-day-live-updates-and-chat/

He's a clown. I thought we were doomed?

THE ramifications for Scottish football will be long and difficult, depending on what action the Scottish Premier League takes against Rangers should the Ibrox club lose its tax case. That is something others should examine and think about long and hard before they urge hammering Rangers with the sort of sanctions which would ensure they could not challenge for the title, never mind actually win it, for many years. It is now a matter of debate as to whether Rangers, should they lose the case, could escape with going into administration. The threat of an even more deadly scenario, that of liquidation, looms on a dark and dangerous horizon. And the vultures are hovering, with the wolves baying in the night, ready to scavenge on the bones of what they may believe to be the carcass of Rangers. Celtic, as anyone with half a brain would guess, will no doubt be applying much thought as to the best way the Parkhead club should act should the worst come to the worst for Rangers. It is something which must take up a great deal of Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwellâ??s time and thoughts as he ponders the best way for the Parkhead club to take advantage of any Ibrox misfortune. Should he, for instance, agree that any SPL sanction of a points deduction, be applied to Rangers for only one season, and campaign accordingly with other clubs where he may hold influence? Or, should Lawwell throw his weight and Celticâ??s influence behind what many might see as a vindictive campaign and lobby for Rangers to be hammered with a points deduction which would render Rangers impotent for four years? He may feel he would have support from other clubs who would believe themselves capable of finishing as runners up to a Celtic side given a free run to the championship. Dundee United, who meet Rangers in the Scottish Cup on Sunday, could be one such club. They could be swayed to favour such an argument. As, perhaps, could Hibernian. And Aberdeen too. And who knows which way Hearts would jump. Others, whose finances are less assured, and whose ambitions at best aim towards a top six finish, but which more realistically encompass merely staying in the top flight, would surely take another view. If events were to overtake them and they were forced into similar circumstances to the ones which threaten Rangers, then a points deduction would relegate them. And a repeated points deduction not only take away any chance of promotion, but create the real threat of a second successive relegation to the Second Division and long term exile. That is why clubs such as St Mirren, St Johnstone, Dunfermline, Inverness Caley and Kilmarnock must ponder long and hard on such prospective dangers to their own clubsâ?? future should they be called upon to vote on just how severe and long term any sanctions the Scottish Premier League may take against Rangers should be. They will also consider the drop in revenue from visiting Rangers supporters, who would be less likely to follow on if their teamâ??s championship chances were fatally damaged from the kick off by long term punitive points deductions. The Sky-ESPN television deal, essential to the survival of all SPL clubs outside of the Old Firm, is another consideration. Take Rangers out of the championship chase equation for more than one season and the TV moguls would be throwing good money after bad by renewing their contract with the SPL. On top of all that, Rangers owner, Craig Whyte, who is already aware of talks that are going on between some clubs, would know just who voted for what. These are long term considerations for Celticâ??s well being which Peter Lawwell would do well to weigh carefully, setting aside all feelings of the bias and bitterness which can often cloud judgement when the Old Firm rivalry is considered. As Sammy Cahn wrote and Frank Sinatra sangâ?¦..â?You canâ??t have one without the other.â? â?¦.ANDâ?¦ TOMORROWâ?¦..Just who is preparing to launch a campaign against any newspaper which gives house room to Odious Creep? And why? You'll be surprised. Find out! HERE! http://leggoland2.blogspot.com/

Come on,you can't seriously be blaming the club doctors for his injuries?

I'm all for young players going out on loan to gain first team football & experience,however with Ness I feel he is good enough,when fit,to play in our first team so unsure about this move.

RANGERS chairman Craig Whyte's determination to achieve his full valuation for the sale of Nikica Jelavic will be tested to the full as the transfer window closes today. Whyte remained in contact with both Everton and West Ham United yesterday, both of whom have made enquiries about the Croatian international striker but have so far baulked at the price tag of around £8 million placed on him by the Rangers owner. The January trading period comes to an end at 11pm tonight for both English and Scottish Premier League clubs and it remains to be seen how firm Whyte will stay in his attempt to secure what he regards as the optimum income for Jelavic. West Ham manager Sam Allardyce last night indicated that his club will not be doing any business with Rangers unless Whyte lowers the price. “If I'm led to believe where it is at the moment, for us it was too expensive,” Allardyce told Sky Sports News. “Too expensive – full stop.” Asked if the club had dropped their interest in the striker, he replied: “Yes.” Jelavic returned to training at Murray Park yesterday, having missed Rangers’ 4-0 win over Hibs at Ibrox on Saturday because of a virus which had seen him absent from the club’s training ground since last Wednesday. It is believed the 26-year-old would welcome a move to Everton, having been less enthusiastic about the prospect of joining Championship side West Ham, who had a reported offer worth £7 million for him turned down by Rangers last week. Rangers’ perilous financial situation, with the outcome of the HMRC tax case against them still pending, means the sale of their most valuable playing asset this month has been widely anticipated. But the brinkmanship involved could yet see Jelavic remain with the club for the rest of the season, an outcome which would clearly be welcomed by Rangers manager Ally McCoist as he attempts to retain the SPL title. The Everton manager David Moyes, speaking at his media conference ahead of tonight’s game against Manchester City, refused to either confirm or deny his interest in Jelavic. “I never talk about players at other clubs, I wouldn’t do that,” said Moyes. “I don’t like it and I didn’t like it when I was a player and I kept hearing there were other centre-halves coming in to take my position. I wouldn’t talk about players at other clubs. If there was any news I would give it to you. You will need to wait until midnight tomorrow night and then we will let you know what is happening.” There was a mischievous element to Moyes’ response to questions yesterday as he gently ridiculed the level of speculation in his homeland surrounding Jelavic. “It is a strange place that Scotland,” added Moyes with a smile. “I don’t know what they do up there. They talk about anything up there.” Moyes did confirm he does want to add another fresh face to his squad before the deadline. He has already completed a loan deal for American midfielder Landon Donovan and the permanent signing of Irish midfielder Darron Gibson from Manchester United this month, while the Goodison club have sold Russian striker Diniyar Bilyaletdinov to Spartak Moscow for a fee believed to be in the region of £5 million. “I said probably a month ago that I would hope to bring two or three players in during the window, so the answer to that is yes,” added Moyes. “I don’t think it will be that difficult (doing a deal on a day when Everton have a game to play). There are people at the club, so if there was business to be done I am sure they will be able to do it. They don’t desperately need me, but it’ll be eight o’clock by kick-off so there will be very little time to go.” The biggest concern for McCoist would be an eleventh hour sale of Jelavic, leaving him with little or no time to secure a replacement. With Kyle Lafferty, Steven Naismith and Kane Hemmings all currently sidelined by injury, veteran Northern Ireland international David Healy is the only other striker at McCoist’s disposal. Having missed out on Polish international Pawel Brozek to Celtic over the weekend, McCoist remains interested in Rapid Vienna’s Albanian forward Hamdi Salihi but time constraints make any move for him appear unlikely. Rangers did free up one salary slot in McCoist’s first team squad yesterday when Spanish winger Juan Manuel Ortiz flew home with a view to joining Almeria on loan for the rest of the season. Ortiz was McCoist’s first signing as Rangers manager last summer but has failed to hold down a regular first team place. http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/spl/rangers_are_asking_too_much_for_nikica_jelavic_says_sam_allardyce_1_2087002

£5m up front with add ons?

The striker will now hold talks over personal terms and undergo a medical after a £5m+ bid was accepted. Rangers have reached a verbal agreement with Everton for the sale of striker Nikica Jelavic. STV has learned the striker will now hold talks over personal terms and undergo a medical with the English Premier League club, after a package in excess of £5m was accepted. Negotiations were conducted between the respective chairmen of both clubs, Craig Whyte and Bill Kenwright, on Monday. Jelavic has scored 36 goals in 54 appearances for Ally McCoist’s side, having moved from Rapid Vienna in the summer of 2010. With McCoist now short of striking options, the Rangers boss may look to previous linked targets on deadline day. Rapid Vienna's Hamdi Salihi, Norwich City's Grant Holt and St Johnstone's Francisco Sandaza are all possible options, with the window due to shut at 11pm on Tuesday. http://sport.stv.tv/football/scottish-premier/rangers/295666-rangers-agree-fee-with-everton-for-nikica-jelavic/

https://twitter.com/#!/jillpaterson8/status/163648804481007616/photo/1

She got me a 7 day ban from FF,hope she's worth it:grin:

Crawley Town can confirm that striker Matt Tubbs has been sold to League 1 Bournemouth for a substantial but undisclosed fee. http://www.crawleytownfc.com/page/LatestNews/0,,11025~2593675,00.html

Everton manager David Moyes has dodged questions about his interest in Rangers striker Nikica Jelavic. Sky Sports sources on Sunday revealed the Premier League club had made an offer to sign the 26-year-old Croatia international before Tuesday's transfer deadline. Rangers are thought to value the player at around £8million and have already rejected an offer from West Ham, while Queens Park Rangers have also been linked with the forward. Jelavic on Saturday missed Rangers' 4-0 win over Hibernian with a virus, and when asked directly about the striker, Moyes said: "I never talk about players at other clubs, I wouldn't do that. "It is a strange place that, Scotland! I don't know what they do up there. They talk about anything up there." David Moyes Quotes of the week "I don't like it and I didn't like it when I was a player and I kept hearing there were other centre-halves coming in to take my position. I wouldn't talk about players at other clubs. Talk "If there was any news, I would give it to you. You will need to wait until midnight tomorrow night and then we will let you know what is happening." Moyes was speaking at a press conference to preview Tuesday's Premier League game against Manchester City. When asked further about the latest reports in Scotland concerning Jelavic, the former Celtic defender added: "It is a strange place that, Scotland! "I don't know what they do up there. They talk about anything up there." Moyes has already completed a loan deal for Landon Donovan and the permanent signing of Darron Gibson in the current transfer window. Time The club have not paid a significant transfer fee for more than two years, but Moyes is now thought to have some money available following the weekend sale of Diniyar Bilyaletdinov. The Russian winger has joined Spartak Moscow for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £5million. Although he would not comment on individuals, Moyes is keen to complete another signing before the deadline. He said: "I said probably a month ago that I would hope to bring two or three players in during the window, so the answer to that is yes." Moyes does not believe having a game on Tuesday night will necessarily be a complication, as he said: "I don't think it will be that difficult. "There are people at the club, so if there was business to be done I am sure they will be able to do it. "They don't desperately need me, but it'll be eight o'clock by kick-off so there will be very little time to go."

Sounds correct. I'm only following Frankie on twitter:smokin:

I think this prick is suggesting money owed for the Ball signing?,could be wrong?

Wylde also came close with a free kick in the first half which wasn't in the highlights!!

Fourth_Official Fourth Official Everton fee for Jelavic is being touted low due to Rangers owing the Goodison Park club money therefore it comes off the bid #efc #rfc 1 hour ago

Juan Manuel Ortiz is to leave Rangers to rejoin Almeria on loan, STV has learned. The Spanish midfielder, who moved to Scotland in the summer for £500,000, has played just 13 times for Ally McCoist’s side. Ortiz is on his way to Spain to hold talks with his former side, with a view to completing a move before Tuesday’s transfer deadline. The 29-year-old, signed a three year contract when he joined Rangers six months ago. At the time of Ortiz's move to Ibrox, Almeria's sporting director, Alberto Benito, told STV the player would be difficult to replace. “We are not happy,” he said. “But for him, who is a very good person and player, this is a good move. “It is important for him to play at a big club like Glasgow Rangers, who have the chance to play in Champions League. “For me it is a big problem because I now have to find three players to replace him.” Ortiz's last appearance for Rangers came in the 2-1 win over St Johnstone on January 14, playing eight minutes as a substitute. http://sport.stv.tv/football/scottish-premier/rangers/295588-juan-manuel-ortiz-to-return-to-almeria/

SOME people would have you believe that Sportscene now so closely resembles Crimewatch that Rob Maclean should finish each show by saying "don't have nightmares". Diving, punching, shoving, angry gestures, off-the-ball stuff: it's all there, shown well after the watershed so that kiddies are protected from the heinous events at Clydesdale Bank Premier League matches. The problem for BBC Scotland, and to a lesser extent fellow broadcasters Sky Sports and ESPN, is that they are getting blamed for showing it. Sportscene and every other Scottish football show in history has always tended to take a kicking for one thing or another, but being called "clipes" and "grasses" for getting players into trouble with the SFA is a new development. The buzz phrase is "trial by Sportscene". Apparently, if the pesky cameras were switched off, players could go around giving the finger to fans to their hearts' content, with the SFA none the wiser. Managers, players and even some supporters are getting it into their heads that the SFA have a new prosecutor, Vincent Lunny, whose job amounts to putting his feet up and settling down to watch Sunday night's Sportscene. Then, with his fingers on the pause and rewind buttons, he jots down his list of guilty men once Maclean et al have highlighted a dive, an up-yours gesture or whatever misdemeanour is flavour of the month. Sportscene shows and discusses something on a Sunday night and, lo and behold, the SFA announce a day or two later that Lunny thinks there's a case to answer and a player is prosecuted. The "trial by Sportscene" line was coined by Stuart McCall, the Motherwell manager, after Michael Higdon appeared on the programme making a gesture to supporters, for which he was subsequently held to account by Lunny and disciplined by the SFA. In one sense McCall was right: Higdon's "offence" was inconsequential, a half-hearted gesture which few saw at the time and even fewer bothered about. It had none of the attitude or anger of Leigh Griffiths' two gestures to Hibernian supporters and it was a nonsense that he was punished. But McCall was wrong to lay into Sportscene for that. It's not the media's job to censor incidents lest they get a player into trouble, nor to look after managers with whom they may have a fine working relationship. Higdon's behaviour was mentioned in newspapers for one reason: it was newsworthy. It was newsworthy because Griffiths' recent windmilling had made it so, and it was newsworthy because the SFA has been punishing players who do it. Sportscene and the papers would have failed had they not looked at Higdon and speculated that he, too, could be in trouble. Given that he had just scored, and so the cameras and media's eyes were inevitably trained on him, it is not as if he was unfairly picked out for doing something off the ball. The notion that a television editor who is a fan of, say, Rangers, would omit something which could get his club into trouble is as groundless as saying a player who supports Celtic would not try his best to score against them. In the current climate, Sportscene must be even more inclined to flag up controversial incidents, not less so. Managers cannot expect broadcasters to turn a blind eye to poor behaviour just because they tended to in the past. The rules have changed now because the SFA's new Fast Track procedures have created these immediate and high-profile retrospective punishments. In doing so, they may have made a subtle but permanent change to the tone of football coverage on television. Cases used to get lost in the SFA's disciplinary mire, and issues about consistency of punishment were less conspicuous. Right now it feels as though the SFA and the BBC are intertwined in a relationship which will bring only further criticism pouring down on both of them. Players weren't routinely banned for making gestures to supporters in the past. Fans talked about it, it added a layer to the player's reputation, and no-one went running to their mammy about it. Lunny opened a can of worms by deciding Griffiths might be deserving of punishment for his first, humdrum gesture to Rangers fans at Easter Road. Having established that as an offence, the SFA have no option but to continue flagging it up whenever something similar occurs. The media have no option but to keep showing and reporting anything which might lead to punishment, because the audience and readers demand it. And some hot-headed players, prone to copycat behaviour and recidivism, are always likely to oblige by doing it again. Lunny has been kept under the parapet by the SFA but the time has come for him to clarify how he decides on who has a case to answer. Yes, it will seem a bit naff for him to admit "I watch what happens on the telly" but of course he does. It would be inexcusable if he didn't. But he must also address a charge of his own, of being over-zealous. Sportscene differs from Crimewatch in one fundamental regard: much of its content only deserves chat, not charges. http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/opinion/trial-by-sportscene-is-not-guilty-of-leading-charge-against-players.16620274

I posted that on FF and got I've now got a 7 day ban:grin: Seems we have posters on here with a better sense of humour:thup:

Just to take your mind off the transfer shite:thup: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLJdDO-B6wk