Ex-Ibrox defender MacKinnon urges chairman to get new manager in now

BY CRAIG SWAN dynamics within both the dressing room and boardroom and how breakdowns in communication between the two could lead to an appalling performance like the 4-0 Scottish Cup semi-final loss to Celtic.

MacKinnon believes players arguing with each other and the dissent that appeared to be aimed towards management by Daniel Candeias is a result of the speculation surrounding Murty’s future.

He said: “There is the uncertainty over the manager, uncertainty over the players and that has manifested itself within the squad. On Sunday, Rangers were just passive, whereas they went at it from the start in the previous league game.

“That tells me players think there are issues behind the scenes with the manager and so on.

“I have fought with players off the park in Rangers’ dressing rooms. I’ve seen others do it.

“But I have never seen dissent against a Rangers manager. That is a frustration.

“You look at some of the managers who Rangers have had and people would never have had the audacity to do that against a manager.

“That’s not taking away from Graeme Murty. He’s been put into a position which is very difficult for him.

“He’s given it 100 per cent but this is how it works.

“When you get towards the end of a season, players go to managers on a daily basis.

“It might be as a one or in twos or three or fours. They go and ask, ‘What is happening next season? Am I in the plans gaffer?’

“If Graeme is unable to say yes or no or tell them whether or not he’d even be there, that becomes a frustration in players and that frustration comes out in various ways.

“You could see it at Hampden. The dissent of the players and a bit of malaise.

“Irrespective of what people think about footballers, when they are put under a bit of pressure about their futures and they are uncertain, it comes out in some way shape or form.

“In the semi-final it manifested itself. You need a foot in the dressing room and a foot in the board room because the language is very different.

“You need to understand what makes a dressing room tick and also a board room tick.

“If you do that you get a perfectlyaligned club with everyone knowing where they are going.

“That is key to the club and they need to do it quickly because it needs a clear strategy of where they are going.”

MacKinnon believes King owes it to the Rangers faithful who have stuck with them through the hard times to take charge of the situation immediately.

He said: “The fans have been magnificent putting their money in and deserve to be told what the future holds.

“If the club has made a decision to move Graeme on and they want a new manager then Dave King should do it very soon. Be a leader. That’s what is needed now.”