Graeme Souness is Right About Rangers’ Recruitment
On Tuesday Graeme Souness talked about something that I have felt strongly about when it comes to Rangers for a long time. Rangers don’t have a good recruitment process. They have made good strides to sort the club out commercially however it has failed where it matters, on the pitch. The former Rangers player/manager spoke about Rangers at a Premier Sports promotional event for the start of the new season. He said: “You’ve got to get it right on the pitch and that’s where in their recent history they’ve got it wrong.” After he was asked how to fix it he said: “You get football people in to make football decisions, it’s not rocket science.” This is an obvious dig at Robbie Thelwell, the son of former sporting director Kevin Thelwell, who is the head of recruitment at Rangers. Take the Rangers recruitment this summer, they’ve signed eight players at a time where they’re extremely short at the centre back position and with players who have struggled in the wide areas. They signed Ben Godfrey who despite already being injured hasn’t exactly looked like he’s going to be that stalwart defender to partner Emmanuel Fernandez, a guy who I think could be a top class centre back if he has an older experience head beside him. Their only other centre back signing is a 22-year-old Olwethu Makhanya, who may be a good player in his own right, I won’t lie and say I’ve seen him play yet however he doesn’t strike me as that player who is going to anchor the Rangers defence, which looks shaky at best. Then you look at the Rangers centre midfield already full with Nico Raskin, Mohammed Diomande, Tochi Chukwuani, Thelo Aasgaard, Connor Barron and Lyall Cameron. They have added Cammy Devlin, Dan Neil and Vanja Dragojevic without moving on any of the aforementioned players that were already there. Then you can look at the right back situation, for 11 years James Tavernier held that position and really never once did Rangers sign an alternative, now Tavernier is no longer there and Rangers still haven’t signed a right back. Dujon Sterling has and probably will cover a multitude of positions including right back and Ross McCrorie who you could argue is a right back and will probably just be deployed there, he looked better at centre midfield. I think there’s a problem at Rangers where they struggle to properly identify what parts of their squad that are the weakest and the recruitment team have poor judgment skills when it come to identifying players. If you look at some of the players Rangers have signed and wasted a lot of money on, Jose Cifuentes, Oscar Cortes, Ben Davies, Rabbi Matondo, Danilo, Sam Lammers. So many of these players sign for big money, prove they’re not worth the price then Rangers struggle to get rid of them, take Ben Davies for example for two years Rangers were loaning him out and the other club had an ‘option to buy’ which at the end of the loan they did not exercise. The only reason he isn’t a Rangers player today is because his Rangers contract ran out, a complete shambles of a player trading model. Danilo is currently back in Brazil again on loan, with an option to buy but I fully expect him to back at Rangers for pre-season training next year. Cifuentes and Cortes have been away on two loans each with options to buy but both of them are still currently under contract with Rangers as it stands. For all the flack the Celtic board get for their transfer dealings, they’ve lost Kelechi Ihanacho and replaced him with Kasper Hogh and lost Daizen Maeda and replaced him with Camilo Duran. On paper that’s two clear improvements on what they had. Of course football isn’t played on paper and we have to wait and see what they do with their time at Celtic, however this has happened without a head of recruitment at Parkhead. Souness continued to say on Rangers: “If you’re giving that power to someone who’s never played the game, I’ll say that again, If you’re giving that power to someone who’s never played the game. I’ll say it a third time for a reason, if you’re giving that power to someone who’s never played the game you’re asking for trouble.” Rangers have recently given former Norway international Stig Inge Bjornbye the job of Performance Director, the only other person involved with the football side of Rangers to have a playing background, other than Derek McInnes and current coaching staff of course. A lack of knowledge of football at the football club I feel has cost them massively over the years and until people like Robbie Thelwell are sent packing like his dad, my fear is Rangers will continue to struggle in the transfer market.
Eva Olid Joins Manchester United After Historic Hearts Success
Manchester United have appointed Eva Olid as head coach of the women’s team after her outstanding spell with Hearts. She signed a contract until June 2028 with an option for an additional year. Olid arrives after leading Hearts through the most successful period in the club’s history. She guided the Edinburgh side from steady progress to Scottish Women’s Premier League champions. Hearts secured their first league title under her leadership during the 2025-26 season. The triumph also earned the club its first qualification for European competition. Olid collected both the Scottish Women’s Premier League Manager of the Season award and the PFA Scotland Women’s Manager of the Year award. Earlier campaigns brought consecutive fourth place league finishes and the club’s first Scottish Cup Final appearance. Hearts also recorded landmark victories against Rangers, Celtic and Glasgow City during her tenure. Progress followed her arrival in 2021 after previous coaching roles in Spain, the United States and youth football development. Experience with the Catalan Football Federation and Houston Dash strengthened her coaching background before moving to Scotland. Manchester United selected Olid after her consistent record of developing players and building successful teams.
Hearts, Rangers, Motherwell and Hibernian in Europe: European Preview
As four Scottish clubs are on the European stage this evening, let’s take a look at each of the four ties. Benfica v Hearts After Hearts’ 6-0 aggregate defeat at the hands of Sturm Graz, the Edinburgh side have been handed possibly the trickiest tie of the round with a trip to Portugal to face European giants Benfica. The Portuguese side slumped to a 2-1 defeat at St Gallen before coming back to win 5-0 to get through, in order to face Hearts, who, as we know, dropped out of the Champions League. Hearts will most likely be in for a long night if they don’t improve defensively and will have to ensure they don’t concede early doors. Benfica are yet to start their league season, but for Hearts, they started it on the wrong foot, losing 2-1 at Pittodrie against Aberdeen in a game which saw them ahead going into the dying moments. If Hearts do see off Benfica, they will play the winner of Aarhus or Sabah, but defeat will see the Tynecastle outfit face either Rapid Wien or Paide Linnameeskond. Jagiellonia v Rangers The Gers make the trip to Poland as they kick off their European campaign. This is both sides’ first European tie this campaign, as Rangers and Derek McInnes eye up a Europa League spot this season. The Polish side were defeated 5-4 by Italian side Fiorentina in last season’s Conference League, whereas for Rangers, they failed to progress past the league phase of the Europa League. On paper, you’d fancy Rangers tonight, but the game this evening will be far from a breeze. Jagiellonia have already played two games this campaign in the Polish league, winning two from two against both Korona and Motor Lublin, with Rangers, of course, drawing 1-1 at Tannadice last week. If Rangers are to progress, they will face the winner of Larne or Iberia Tbilisi, but should the Gers suffer defeat, they will meet either FC RFS or FK Jablonec. HJK Helsinki v Motherwell The Steelmen are in Europe with a trip to Finland in store. HJK are rather well known on the big stage despite being knocked out of last season’s European campaign with a rather surprising defeat to Bulgarian side Arda Kardzhali on penalties. This is Motherwell’s first season in Europe since 2022, which saw the Steelmen stunned by Sligo Rovers after a 3-0 aggregate defeat. HJK Helsinki came up against fellow Scottish side Aberdeen in 2023, with both meetings ending in draws, in a group that also included PAOK and Frankfurt. The hosts eased past Northern Irish side Coleraine 8-0 on aggregate in the last round, with Motherwell getting past Faroese side HB Tórshavn 5-0 on aggregate, setting up a tasty meeting in Finland. Helsinki have already played 18 games in their league season, as the Finnish side sit fourth with 8 wins, 4 draws, and 6 defeats. For Motherwell, they defeated Hibernian 2-1 in the capital on opening day on Sunday as the Steelmen continue to impress. Should Motherwell progress, they will meet last season’s Europa League finalists, Freiburg. Hibernian v KF Shkëndija The Hibees are back after starting their European campaign in horror with a shock 2-0 defeat away to Malisheva, but made up for it in the second leg with a 4-1 victory at Easter Road. North Macedonian side KF Shkëndija are in town, having defeated Europa FC 6-0 over the course of two legs, as well as defeating NK Bravo in the latest round, to earn them the tie in Leith. The visitors have also met fellow Scottish side Aberdeen before, back in 2015, where the Dons were held to a goalless draw in the Granite City, but Aberdeen drew 1-1 away from home as they progressed via the away goals rule, which, of course, no longer exists. Hibs started their season off on the wrong foot, with a 2-1 defeat against Motherwell, but for the visitors, they began their league season with three points, defeating FK Skopje 3-0 on the opening day. Should David Gray’s men progress, they will meet the winner of IFK Göteborg or KAA Gent in the Play-Off Round.
Scott Brown Tears Into Former Celtic Coach With Brutal ‘Zero Personality’ Verdict
Scott Brown Tears Into Former Celtic Coach With Brutal ‘Zero Personality’ Verdict Scott Brown has delivered one of his most candid assessments yet of his time at Celtic, launching a scathing attack on former assistant manager Peter Grant and revealing he was prepared to leave the club if the coaching setup had remained unchanged. Speaking on the Open Goal podcast, the Celtic icon reflected on a difficult spell under Tony Mowbray and admitted the arrival of Neil Lennon proved to be a turning point for both the club and his own future. Brown claimed that had Mowbray and Grant stayed in charge, he would have accepted a move away from Parkhead. “Lenny came in and we started winning games and the momentum changed from when Tony was there. “I think if Tony and Peter Grant were still there, I’d have been away straight away. “I had no time for Peter Grant whatsoever.” Brown’s Brutal Assessment When asked what his issue was with Grant, Brown didn’t hold back. He pointed to concerns over man management before delivering a cutting verdict on the former Celtic coach. “Man management. Personal. “Personality? Zero. “Tony, I got on alright. But Peter Grant, no.” The comments offer a rare insight into the dressing room during one of the most turbulent periods in recent Celtic history, with Mowbray’s reign ending after just nine months before Lennon took over and guided the club back on track. Premier League Interest Brown also revealed he came close to leaving Celtic on more than one occasion. The former captain disclosed that Tottenham Hotspur made an offer after his second season in Glasgow, while Newcastle United later tabled a five-year contract before Lennon’s appointment. Despite serious interest from the Premier League, Brown ultimately chose to stay and went on to become one of the most decorated players in Celtic’s history. Looking back, he joked about what life could have been like on Tyneside. “Imagine me, I’m bad enough in Glasgow, imagine how many nights out I’d have in Newcastle!” A Defining Moment Brown’s comments underline just how significant Neil Lennon’s arrival was in shaping the next chapter of Celtic’s success. While the former skipper has regularly spoken about the standards expected at the club, his latest remarks make it clear he believes strong leadership and effective man management were crucial in keeping him at Parkhead. The outspoken interview has already sparked debate among Celtic supporters, with Brown’s unfiltered verdict on Grant likely to be one of the biggest talking points to emerge from the podcast.