Rangers step up search for successor
Ibrox club move to find Gerrard replacement
RANGERS have stepped up their search for Steven Gerrard’s replacement as Aston Villa get set to appoint the Ibrox boss as their manager.
Gerrard is poised to finalise a deal that will take him to Villa Park just months after he guided Rangers to an unbeaten Premiership campaign and historic 55th league title.
The loss of the 41-year-old is a huge blow for the champions and comes on the eve of make-or-break fixtures against Hibernian and Sparta Prague and a potentially defining run of fixtures in their top- flight defence.
Gerrard quickly emerged as Villa’s prime candidate to replace Dean Smith in recent days and is now on the brink of clinching a return to the Premier League three- and-a-half years after leaving his role as a Liverpool youth manager to make the move to Ibrox.
Assistant manager Gary McAllister, coaches Michael Beale and Tom Culshaw and performance expert Jordan Milsom will also leave Rangers after Villa put together a multi-million pound compensation deal for the management team.
Sporting director Ross Wilson is now overseeing the process to recruit Gerrard’s successor and several names – including former Rangers stars Gennaro Gattuso, Derek McInnes and Kevin Thomson – already feature prominently in the betting markets.
Dutchman Giovanni Van Bronckhorst (inset) has also been touted as a possible target and is seeking to return to the game following a spell in China with Guangzhou R&F.
The 46-year-old has previously guided Feyenoord to three major honours as boss and said: “I’ve had a lot of time lately to be at home and spend a lot of time in my found-ation. That was a bit more difficult in recent years. Now I have the sense and energy to take on a great challenge.
“It is important in that regard – which club is it, and does it suit me? It was great fun in Asia, but after a month I noticed that it was becoming very difficult because of Corona.
“It was therefore important to return to the Netherlands as soon as possible. But I have always been interested in new cultures. It was great to work in China, but it was impossible with Corona.”