Rangers and Celtic multi-club models are recommended, and both teams are instructed to deal with the issue head-on.

“It seems sensible to me. It gives them a chance to spend some of these reserves and create a much bigger asset for the club in general. It would give them the chance to tap into this major global fanbase.

“It’s the same for Rangers, I don’t know why it hasn’t been done. These are the questions which have to be asked of these clubs.”

Celtic started their Champions League campaign midweek with a 5-1 hammering of Slovan Bratislava while Rangers begin their Europa League venture against Malmo next week. The Scottish coefficient fell out of Europe’s top 15 last term, and it means the Premiership champions lose their automatic place in the league phase of the 25/26 Champions League.

Dave King has sensationally challenged the Rangers board to let the Ibrox faithful decide who runs the crisis-hit club.

The South African-based millionaire revealed earlier this week he was ready to return as chairman after John Bennett was forced to stand down on health grounds. But his offer has been given short shrift by rival shareholders including Douglas Park and George Taylor, who remain deeply unhappy with the shock way King quit as Gers’ boardroom chief back in 2020 at the height of the Covid pandemic.

King, however, is refusing to give in and believes he has the support of the Light Blues legions having previously wrestled control of the club away from the clutches of Mike Ashley before appointing title-winning boss Steven Gerrard. Now the Castlemilk-born businessman – still the club’s largest shareholder with a 14 percent stake – has thrown down the gauntlet by daring his boardroom opponents to put the question of who controls Rangers to a vote at an extraordinary general meeting.

In a statement given to Record Sport, King said: “I completely understand why some influential board members don’t want me back. They know from past experience that I would not tolerate board members who are only in it for the ‘jacket and tie’ and don’t actually want to do any real work. If the board can, for once, set aside self-interest and put the supporters first, then I offer a challenge.

“Urgently call an EGM as I did to get Mike Ashley out and put yourselves up for re-election. I will in turn put up my nominations, including myself.

“None of the existing board members (who presently protect each other) can vote and neither will I. John Bennett and (significant shareholder) George Letham would also be excluded from voting for obvious reasons. In that way we can leave it to supporters for once to decide who they want to run their club.”

Gers once again find themselves in Celtic’s shadow having watched their Parkhead rivals win 22 of the 30 trophies up for grabs since King’s 2015 takeover. He lays the blame for that at Park’s doorstep, accusing his successor as chairman of squandering the chance to reestablish the club as a dominant force after Gerrard’s Invincibles won the club’s 55th league crown in 2021.

While current boss Philippe Clement was told he had to sell his high-earners this summer before he could re-invest in his squad, Celtic have gone from strength to strength under Brendan Rodgers. The Hoops have £77million already in the bank, with another eye-watering sum north of £40million due to be deposited on the back of this year’s Champions League run. And King – who has offered to return on a two-year-basis to help recruit fresh investors – insists Gers need a huge cash injection and quick if they are to keep pace with their rampant rivals.

He said: “I estimate that the club needs a minimum of £50million to achieve our short to medium term objectives but that could never be raised under the present board structure. The funds we need must come from a far wider and wealthier base and from parties that will be willing to invest more (over time) to take the club forward and to become a modern age football club.

“This board could not put forward the business case to achieve such an investment. Raising a much smaller amount may pay for the recent mistakes and overspends (eg. New Edmiston House and the Copland stand) but will not lead to any measurable improvement in the fortunes of the team.

“Plugging the gaps this board has created due to poor player recruitment, manager payoffs, the failure of player trading, etc still means that millions of the supporters’ cash has been wasted.”

John Gilligan – a key figure when King first took control of the club nine years ago – is back in charge as interim chairman. He’s now leading the hunt for a new CEO after St Mirren vice-chair Jim Gillespie knocked back the chance to replace James Bisgrove.

The club are also making use of a recruitment agency but King claims that move is “counter-productive and expensive”. He added: ”This decision again reinforces the disconnection of this board from reality and its inability to get recruitment right.”

Following John Bennett’s departure, the Rangers board decides on Philippe Clement – Chris Jack

The Rangers board remain “fully committed” to Philippe Clement after the resignation of John Bennett, according to Chris Jack.

The journalist reported on 16 September via the Rangers Review that the Belgian will remain in charge despite an early exit from the Champions League and a heavy Old Firm defeat this season.

It was shared that acting chairman John Gilligan sat down with the manager at Ibrox after their 1-0 win against Dundee United on 15 September.

Rangers make Philippe Clement sack decision

If it wasn’t already obvious that Clement would be keeping his role as Rangers boss after his contract extension, it is now almost guaranteed.

Over the last few weeks, there has been some pressure building up around the future of the boss following poor results in the Scottish Premiership that have them lying third in the Scottish Premiership.

Although their performances haven’t been the best, not all of the Gers’ new arrivals have been fully integrated into the squad.

This alongside the fact that Rangers weren’t even playing their home games at Ibrox will no doubt have something to do with it.

While fans and pundits alike may think the Light Blues are wrong to back Clement after his below-par performance in the transfer window, in the long-term it makes a lot of sense.

The club are undergoing a rebuild and once that’s complete, fans will likely see improvements across the board.

Bajrami, a former Celtics player, talked about the tough transfer and Rangers move.

Nedim Bajrami has revealed he turned to former teammates Liam Henderson and Josh Doig for advice before committing his future to Rangers on deadline day.

“I’m worried,” four boys said in reference to the Rangers regular following what he did against Celtic.

Stevie Clifford admits that he is concerned Jack Butland “has forgotten how to use his hands” after recent developments at Rangers.

The Englishman who impressed during his first season at Ibrox has come under fire in the opening weeks of the new campaign, particularly for his positioning during the Gers’ Old Firm defeat to Celtic at Parkhead.

While some supporters have raised concerns about whether or not Vaclav Cerny fits into Philippe Clement’s system in Glasgow, Four Lads host Clifford admits that Butland is a bigger worry for him.

Speaking on The Rangers Review YouTube channel (11 September, 26:25) he said: “There are a million issues in this team before I even contemplate Cerny.

“I’m not concerned about [Oscar] Cortes either to be honest, but I’m concerned about our midfield balance, I’m concerned about our centre-halves, I’m concerned that our goalkeeper has forgotten how to use his hands.

“All of these things I’m concerned about before I worry about a new guy that we’ve seen in a couple of games.”

Will Jack Butland exit Rangers after Ibrox transfer speculation?

It is concerning that Butland’s form seems to have fallen off a cliff in the last few weeks. There were signs last term that the Englishman wasn’t perfect, but more often than not he was the Light Blues’ best player.

However, this season he has almost seemed like a liability between the posts as he has repeatedly been caught out of position or seemed slightly too slow to react to efforts that fans would expect him to save.

His form has only become more frustrating because of the Light Blues’ stance in the transfer market. The keeper was the only player in Clement’s squad supposedly not for sale as the Belgian undertook a summer rebuild.

While the Gers’ decision was commended at the time, it does feel as though they may have missed the perfect opportunity to cash in on their most valuable players to hand Clement some cash to add to his ranks.

Hopefully, after the international break, the stopper will return to his best form and show the Gers why they were so desperate to keep him this summer.

Before his night of great irony, I got a glimpse into the Rangers abyss as Clement infuriates the locals – Hugh Keevins

The Belgian must understand you can lose a dressing room but you cannot lose a city

It is a textbook example of unfortunate timing as well as the height of irony.

Rangers’ manager Philippe Clement is scheduled to hold a club-organised question-and-answer session for charitable purposes on Tuesday night in the aftermath of his fifth Old Firm derby without a win. The irony being that the event comes at a time when the answers he has given to the questions about losing to Celtic last Sunday have already outraged the Ibrox support. Pre-publicity for the fans gathering states that Clement will, among other topics, discuss his: “Aspirations for this season.”

I would have thought, under current circumstances, the manager’s first target on a personal basis would have been to remain in work for the duration of the league championship. If Celtic had won by the margin they should have done last weekend – and doubled their 3-0 win to a watershed scoreline with far-reaching consequences – Clement’s employment prospects would have been left hanging by a thread.

There are embarrassments that preclude any hope of survival – and that could have been one of them. You can lose a dressing room and still have a defiant hope of survival.

But if you lose a city, then you’re done for and nothing will save you. The green half of Glasgow is laughing at Clement and the blue half has been plunged into a state of acute depression because of him.

Some of the callers to the radio since last weekend’s events at Celtic Park have provided stunning soundbites. One fan said he didn’t know: “How much more I can take.”

Another disillusioned supporter declared himself to be in the “depths of despair”. And yet another victim of remorse, gripped by a need for recrimination, summed up Rangers as being in a “dark abyss”. It is the Five Stages of Grief for a tortured support.

● DENIAL. No attempt. A full disclosure of suffering.

● ANGER. Fans outside Ibrox waiting for the players’ return from Celtic Park ticked that box.

● BARGAINING. About what? With whom?

● DEPRESSION. Check.

● ACCEPTANCE. For now, but attitudes will harden further if things get worse.

I wrote here, following the exit from the Champions League qualifier against Dynamo Kyiv at Hampden, that Rangers’ situation was worse than the events surrounding administration and liquidation in 2012 because there was now emotional, as opposed to financial, bankruptcy. I would say I have been proved to be correct.

The majority of fans are growing distant from those who govern the club, pick the team and wear the jersey. Accusations of capitulation on the park, alleged maladministration off it.

I can’t begin to imagine what it must be like to put £20million of your own money into what is presently an ailing football club, but I know it must speak volumes for the love of Rangers felt by Ibrox chairman John Bennett. He is not, however, confronted by the onerous task of trying to bring sustainability to the club’s business model while dealing with an inescapable decline on the field.

Rangers’ next game is at Tannadice, where they won Nine-in-a-row, and gained immortality in 1997. When they go there next Sunday it is about salvaging credibility in the eyes of a support who have started to lose belief in the team and the manager.

When Walter Smith beat Dundee United that pre-Millennium night it was about Gough and Laudrup. Now it’s about cough and splutter.

The symptoms of anxiety are evident among a less-distinguished group of players and the fans aren’t buying dance routines after a cup win over St Johnstone or verbal gymnastics designed to camouflage a going-over from Celtic. The supporters must be feeling as if the world is out to get them at present.

Rangers at home to St. Johnstone on a Sunday could hardly be described as box office at the best of times. But when the SPFL re-arrange the kick-off for a time when parents are putting their kids to bed for school the following day what attraction the fixture did have in the first place suffers a commercial blow.

Likewise, if anything went wrong when Rangers were in temporary residence at the National Stadium, the default setting was in place to reference the lack of atmosphere there. Clement’s side had better be careful when they play Dundee in the Premier Sports Cup at Ibrox in front of three operational stands later this month that default does not simply become their fault in the event of mishap.

Whoever Rangers are playing, wherever and whenever, it is time for them to do their talking on the park. Sometimes a cliche is a comfort as well as being instructive.

 

“In Pain”: Celtic hero makes fun of Kris Boyd after he loses his mind over Rangers’ defeat on Sky Sports

Rangers losing 3-0 at Celtic left Kris Boyd “in pain” and his fellow pundits searching for a therapist for him, according to Stiliyan Petrov.

The former Hoops midfielder mocked the ex-Gers striker in response to a fan on X (2 September) after being alongside him in the Sky Sports studio at Parkhead the day before.

Boyd raged at the deficiencies on display on the pitch and the running of the club off it after the result which left Philippe Clement five points adrift of Brendan Rodgers already, and Petrov admitted it was “hectic” in the studio.

He wrote: “Nothing to add on. He was in pain. I left him to get his frustration and anger out.”

He then added, referring to himself and James McFadden: “We were googling for a good phycological [sic] mentor to calm him down. It was hectic in the studio”.

Philippe Clement goes another Old Firm derby without Rangers win

Boyd spoke for plenty of Gers supporters when he took aim at how far off their Old Firm rivals they have slipped since winning the title under Steven Gerrard.

Philippe Clement has now gone five games without a victory over Celtic and the team appears to have gone backwards since it threw away the title last term.

The sad truth for the Light Blues is that Petrov, Chris Sutton and company can afford to sit back and enjoy themselves while Boyd is left furious.

A position of strength three years ago has been well and truly squandered now and it is an uphill battle once again.

What Tanner Tessmann has been told about his future at Venezia after summer link to Celtic

One player who Brendan Rodgers was believed to be interested in this summer appears to be leaving his club as Celtic looks to bolster their roster.

Tanner Tessman was linked to Celtic this summer after his July transfer to Inter Milan collapsed due to unsatisfactory negotiations with his agency.

At the time, Turin, Parma, Como, Brentford, and Celtic were rumoured to be interested in the American, but there have been no updates since.

But according to general director Filippo Antonelli of Venezia, who made comments about the 22-year-old midfielder this week, he is no longer in the Serie A team’s future plans.

“Out of the Venezia project” is Tessmann.
Although Tessmann is no longer in Venezia’s plans for this season, Antonelli assured Il Gazzetinno that he will continue to practice with the first squad.

Football Scotland reports that the midfield player has been informed he is not eligible for selection for the upcoming season, possibly as a result of the rumours around his future.

“Tessmann is out of the Venezia project,” declared Antonelli. Please try to appreciate that this has been a challenging week. I apologise especially to the gamer for the predicament he found himself in. He is not currently on Di Francesco’s list of available players, but it is entirely up to him to make that decision.

He trains with the rest of the team, of course, but right now he is not there in terms of his brain. Our way of thinking does not change in Serie A.

“We would rather have players that are fervently committed to our goal and immensely motivated to play with the Venezia shirt. It would be preferable to take someone else if not.

A US youth might present Celtic with a choice.
Tessmann made his debut in the 7-0 thumping of Trinidad back in February 2021. He has received two caps for the United States.

At the Stade d’…, Tanner Tessmann attempts a shot during the Men’s group A match between the United States and New Zealand at the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

Andrea Vilchez/ISI/Getty Images image
This summer, he participated in four Olympic games for the United States in Paris and advanced to the quarterfinals.

But with his future at Venezia in jeopardy, does Rodgers think the young player could provide the quality he needs to get ready for the Champions League?

Since the Celtic manager signed Paulo Bernardo this summer, you would have to assume not, but it is a move that should be carefully monitored as the adaptable Tessmann now appears to be headed out.