Danny Röhl (October 2025 to date)

The dismissal of Russell Martin following a disastrous 17 games tenure saw Rangers searching for a 5th Manager / Head Coach in less than 4 years. It was a damning statistic for a Club who had gone 70 years (from 1899 to 1969) with just 4 different bosses at the helm.

Whilst the removal of Martin was almost universally welcomed within the Rangers support, the continued presence of Patrick Stewart (CEO) and Kevin Thelwell (Sporting Director) was simply unacceptable; Martin had been their choice and, frankly, it had been a mitigating disaster.

Player recruitment over the summer was understandably coming under massive scrutiny following a woeful start to the season. There was very little evidence to suggest that the Club should be putting their faith in Thelwell whilst Stewart’s time at Ibrox had been massively underwhelming.

Initially, it appeared that American owners Andrew Cavanagh and Paraag Marathe would be the driving force behind appointing a successor. For many, it was hoped that this was an indication that the influence of Stewart and Thelwell was diminishing, a case of them having had their chance, so to speak.

Cavanagh and Marathe headed to London for talks with several candidates although there was an element of deja vu around those being linked. Steven Gerrard, Kevin Muscat and Danny Röhl were all names which had been firmly on the radar over the summer. It was suggested there were talks with two others, one believed to be former Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

If the support had craved that the hands-on approach of Cavanagh and Marathe would lead to a decisive appointment, the outcome was somewhat different. On successive weekends, the widely expected announcement of first Gerrard and then Muscat was met with bemusement when both asked to be excluded from the process at the 11th hour, allegedly after holding further discussions with Stewart and Thelwell. In between times, Röhl had also asked to be ruled out of contention! It was a deeply embarrassing situation. Whilst the Club could do little to prevent speculation, Rangers were clearly failing to control the narrative which was only adding to the frustration of a support already at boiling point.

Despite having a two-week window to unveil a successor, Rangers faced Dundee United on October 18th with Academy coach Steven Smith in charge of first team duties. Following another disappointing home draw and with Muscat now out the picture, German coach Danny Röhl was suddenly back in the running and soon to be confirmed Head Coach on 20th October. The owners were adamant that Röhl had been the first choice from day 1.

The title of Head Coach was a point of debate. Many believe that an institution such as Rangers requires a traditional Manager, a figure of stature, a focal point and leader. Gerrard certainly ticked that box whilst the perception of Danny is that he is more of a training ground coach. However, it would be grossly unfair to view Röhl as Russell Martin mk2 simply because of that comparison

At only 36 years of age, Röhl had vast experience in coaching having worked at RB Leipzig and Southampton under Ralph Hasenhuttl. His rising stock saw him return to Germany where he was part of Hansi Flick’s all conquering Bayern Munich side. In addition, he had assisted Flick in his role as German National Team manager.

Danny’s only experience as being the man in charge came at English Championship side Sheffield Wednesday, a reign which lasted from October 2023 until the summer of 2025. Having steered the side away from relegation in his debut season, his time at Wednesday was deemed successful but a lack of stability within the Club and fan anger towards the owners did not create the best environment to build upon that initial promise.

Röhl’s first match in charge of Rangers saw his side crash 3-0 to Norwegian side SK Brann in the Europa League match in Bergen. It was a spineless performance which left the side rock bottom of the 36 league table. Röhl headed to the disgruntled travelling support at full time to apologise, something that was repeated hours later at the Norwegian Airport. If he didn’t fully appreciate the size of the task on his hands, it would have been abundantly clear by the time he touched back down in Glasgow.

by Rick Plews