CHAIRMAN EYES IBROX LEGACY FIT FOR KING

DAVE KING’S exit strategy seems pretty clear. Sort out Mike Ashley, negotiate a better deal with Sports Direct and then find someone else to be the Rangers chairman.

Ashley comes across as being about as placable as an elephant in musth, of course, but it does seem true to say that King’s time in charge is entering a potentially defining period what with those legal disputes with Sports Direct and Mark Warburton, the Takeover Panel on his case and a new manager trying to get the team back on the straight and narrow.

Despite improved financial results, the club continues to depend upon existing investors providing interestfree loans and still needs to find a director of football.

Rangers, no doubt, are much better off than when King took over two years ago and, even though his promises are yet to be fulfilled, he still appears to have the support of the fanbase.

Of course, it can be difficult to tell. Just weeks after this page questioned the effectiveness of the supporters’ collective formed in the wake of the takeover, Club 1872 — housed inside Ibrox and with Rangers’ company secretary on its board — has been plunged into disarray with the resignation of three directors.

More vocal elements of the support have been neutralised, but the challenges keep coming. These are more likely to determine whether King eventually rides into the South African sunset with the legacy he desires. It could be a fascinating spell.