Earlier today my friend Eric Knott did a piece on Gerrard and the possibility of his returning to Ibrox. I like the coincidence of us both having the same inspiration; it’s because we read the same nonsensical Ibrox fan sites, and over on those this bizarre idea is taking real hold along with another I’ll discuss later, or perhaps tomorrow.
In its latest spiral of desperation, they are once again caught up in the fantasy that a managerial switch will be their quick fix. This is where the Gerrard myth, in all its glory, rears its head once more. They believe they can fire Clement – on the cheap too; I’ll come back to that later to tackle yet another piece of media inspired nonsense doing the rounds – and bring this guy back.
Some of them seriously believe that Gerrard will not only return to save them, putting an end to the dominance we have been enjoying for years, including a few when he was at Ibrox before, but that Celtic supporters should be, and are, trembling at the thought.
It’s the stuff of dreams, not reality. And like most fantasies, it falls apart when you look at it even for a moment.
For starters, what they seem to forget is that Steven Gerrard wasn’t as successful as they like to remember. His tenure at Ibrox yielded just a solitary league title — the fabled “COVID title,” which came during a season that saw every other club slashing budgets and playing behind closed doors. Talk about exceptional circumstances.
It was an anomaly in an otherwise barren trophy cabinet.
This wasn’t the mark of a manager dominating a league; it was the mark of a club that had a perfect storm in their favour. No fans in the grounds, no pressure cooker atmosphere, no typical challenges that come with a full stadium roaring on an opponent … or worse; the frustration of a home crowd when you aren’t playing particularly well.
He took advantage of that, yes, but beyond that? The numbers don’t lie.
In his 193 games in charge of the Ibrox club, Gerrard’s win ratio was just shy of 65%. In comparison, Brendan Rodgers, over his time at Celtic, has maintained a win ratio of 70%, and that difference isn’t trivial. Five percent doesn’t sound like a lot, but in football, it’s a chasm. It’s the difference between scraping through seasons and consistently dominating them.
Moreover, Gerrard didn’t add a single domestic cup to his haul, and he was frequently on the verge of being sacked. That it didn’t happen was more down to circumstance than competence. The initial COVID outbreak saved him from a certain termination and his hasty departure to Aston Villa saved him the second time when Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic started finding its rhythm. Had he stayed, it’s hard to imagine him surviving another year.
Yet, this is the man they dream of bringing back.
And for what? He didn’t revolutionise the club the first time around. In fact, much of their current financial predicament can be traced back to his tenure. Gerrard spent big, too big. He was Dave King’s favourite, handed far too much money to splash on players who largely didn’t deliver. And now the club is paying for that in more ways than one.
But let’s say, for argument’s sake, they did manage to bring him back.
What would it take? Money, and lots of it. Gerrard’s in Saudi Arabia now, raking in the kind of wages the Ibrox club simply can’t match unless they throw their financial caution to the wind once again. They would need to offer a king’s ransom just to tempt him back, and on top of that, he’d want his entire backroom team and a transfer war chest to fix the squad. And where is that money going to come from?
Even if they did find the cash, what would they be getting?
A manager who, in over 190 games, oversaw more than 40 draws and 26 defeats. A manager who never came close to achieving what Rodgers or Ange Postecoglou has at Celtic Park. It’s clear that, despite what some Ibrox fans believe, he’s not the saviour they’re hoping for.
And if they think we’d be frightened of him, they’re very much mistaken. Gerrard was never that impressive. His record against Celtic wasn’t anything to boast about, and with serious money to spend, it’s hard to see him coping, particularly when Rodgers is in charge at Parkhead.
Gerrard has been at the centre of two persistent myths. We’ve already annihilated one of them, that of The Mooch. Let’s not forget; it’s not that long ago we were being told that Gerrard hardly knew anything anyway and that his assistant was the brains behind it all.
If that’s so, then the pair of them, between them, didn’t have enough thinking power to turn on a six watt bulb. The Mooch got his own gig at Ibrox on the back of that and he didn’t make it to the 50 game mark. Now we’re being fed the second myth; that of Gerrard himself, the real genius behind one trophy out of nine. My God, how desperate are they?
If he did return, I’ve no doubt he’d be gone within a year. It would not be a triumphant comeback but a step backwards for a club that already looks lost. Celtic fans certainly aren’t going to lose any sleep over this prospect; if anything, we’d welcome it.
There is no escape from a long future of mediocrity for the Ibrox mob, the only thing that could save them eventually is patience, bring in a competent manager like McInnes who could maybe, just maybe keep them in 2nd place over a rebuilding period.
Will this happen? I don’t think so, the majority of The Rangers support don’t possess the patience or intelligence to accept this. For generations they’ve been fed a diet of entitlement, arrogance and a hatred and lack of respect for Scottish Football.
The hatred for Scottish Football has only increased since 2012 with the complete factual denial of the cheating and ultimately the Liquidation of the original Rangers FC.
As a guy brought up near Ibrox Park, I was always aware of the sectarian hatred surrounding that ground every other week. People might say I’m a bit narrow minded, but in the twilight of my life I’ve enjoyed this football century and our more or less complete domination of domestic football. Any wins we get in Europe are great, but
Celtic lording it over Scottish Football is so enjoyable and shouldn’t be underestimated.
‘Welcome it’ ?! Ah would personally chip in tae bring him here. Their support are also still absolutely deluded enough, tae think it was their boards fault he left. Reality is, he jumped at the first chance he got at the EPL. They’re the masters of twistin history tae suit theirselves. Hope they get their wish tho.
One fuckin trophy outta TEN – Just let that sink in for a bit…
Let’s be having that Liverpool and Celtic fan Steven Gerrard at Liebrox the day before tomorrow !!!
Maybe their hoping he’ll spend the money he’s made in Saudi on the team as well, deludamol overdose.
I think Rangers would be better off picking Derek McInnes. He has done good jobs at Aberdeen, St Johnstone, and Kilmarnock.
Only Sevco can pick McInnes Joey – ‘Rangers’ are dead over 12 years now !