Paul Le Guen (2006 to 2007)
Following the public announcement in February 2006 that Alex McLeish would leave the Club at the end of season 2005/06, speculation immediately switched to who the incoming boss would be. For the second time under David Murray’s ownership, Rangers turned to Europe for a solution and by the following month it was announced that Frenchman Paul Le Guen would be in place for the start of season 2006/07.
At just 42 years of age, the former PSG midfielder had already built a reputation as one of Europe’s most sought-after coaches having led Lyon to 3 successive Ligue 1 titles between 2003 and 2005. Surprisingly, he resigned his position in the aftermath of that third success and, despite many offers to make a swift return, opted for a full year away from the limelight.
Just as when Dick Advocaat had joined in 1998, Le Guen would inherit a Rangers squad which had failed to land any silverware in the preceding 12 months. However, whilst Advocaat had been bankrolled to unprecedented levels 8 years earlier, the financial backdrop at the Club was now somewhat different. Alex McLeish had been forced to begin the downsizing throughout his time at Ibrox and this would certainly have to consider under Le Guen.
Perhaps the strategy was that Le Guen would be able to mould a squad of young players into a top side, thus moving away from a long-established policy of signing high profile players (naturally on large wages). The arrival of relatively unknown figures such as Dean Furman, William Stanger, Antoine Ponroy and Makhtar N’Diaye would certainly have seemed to support that view. A trio of signings from Austria Vienna (Libor Sionko, Filip Sebo and Sasa Papac) allied to the arrival of
U21 internationalist Karl Svensson (Sweden) and French talent Jeremy Clement accounted for much of the outlay whilst Manchester United loan signings Phil Bardsley and Lee Martin and goalkeeper Lionel Letizi provided some British identity and experience.
A fitness fanatic with a strong reputation for discipline, the Frenchman would soon be tested when former captain Fernando Ricksen’s behaviour fell well short of expected requirements on a flight to the pre-season destination of South Africa. Ricksen was sent home in disgrace, his Rangers career over before the Le Guen era was even underway. Whether or not there could have been any other outcome to this incident is debatable, but it was a difficult and unwelcome start for the new manager given Ferando’s popularity and standing amongst his team-mates.
The season started with a win at Fir Park as Motherwell were defeated 2-1 on the opening day of the League campaign, Sionko scoring on his debut in a match where Rangers at times played some impressive football. Charlie Adam would find himself in the starting XI and he would now establish himself as a first team regular. Trailing 2-0 in the first league game at Ibrox to Dundee United, Rangers showed character to battle back and earn a 2-2 draw. However, a second successive draw (this time at Dunfermline) already saw questions being asked of the new manager with new goalkeeper Letizi coming under scrutiny. A first league defeat came in September at Easter Road with Bardsley seeing red in the closing stages. Looking for a reaction in the next league fixture, there was not much evidence as Celtic ran out comfortable 2-0 winners at Parkhead (former Gers striker Kenny Miller adding insult to injury by scoring for the home side). After just 8 league fixtures, Rangers trailed Celtic by 7 points and domestically the signs were far from encouraging.
Star player Barry Ferguson had missed the opening months of the season recovering from surgery. Although back in the starting line up for those defeats at Hibs and Celtic, there was a feeling amongst the Rangers support that the fortunes of the side would improve as his match fitness returned. A strong performance (and goal) from the Rangers skipper in Molde gave the side the platform to qualify for the Group Stages of the now revamped UEFA Cup.
By the time Celtic came calling in December 2006, Rangers had suffered further league defeats to Inverness Caledonian Thistle (home), Dundee United and Falkirk in addition to crashing out of the League Cup to St.Johnstone at Ibrox. Of all the new signings, only young Jeremy Clement could be deemed to have consistently earned pass marks. Perhaps eventually bowing to fan pressure, goalkeeper Letizi had now been removed from the side and replaced with Allan McGregor.
A late equaliser from Brahim Hemdani ensured that the gap with Celtic did not extend further than the 16 points that already existed and the player celebrated with his manager in a show of solidarity. However, with only half the season played the title race was already over.
It would later emerge that cracks in the relationship between Le Guen and skipper Ferguson were evident as far back as October when Rangers succumbed to Inverness at Ibrox. Ferguson was naturally furious at full time and seemed taken aback at the lack of any reaction from Le Guen in the home dressing room at full time. Le Guen, it seemed, placed little value in the role of captain and did not welcome Ferguson’s input in terms of any post-mortem. A training session later in the same week would see Phil Bardsley removed from the session with Le Guen unhappy at the over-zealous nature of the Bardsley’s tackling. It was a decision that would undoubtedly have seemed alien to Ferguson and the Scottish players (in particular), Bardsley never again appearing in a blue jersey with his loan spell soon to be cut short.
If the domestic form was erratic at best, the opposite could be said in Europe where Le Guen’s side had looked assured with results having exceeded expectations. Rangers became the first Scottish Club side to win on Italian soil in European competition when they defeated Livorno 3-2 on a rain-soaked night. A late Kris Boyd goal would earn Rangers a credible draw in Auxerre (2-2) and allied to two home wins (versus Maccabi Haifa and Partizan Belgrade) in which no goals were conceded, qualification from the group stages was achieved. Perhaps the majority of players signed by Le Guen were better suited to the slower pace of continental football.
Although many had already reached the conclusion that Le Guen was not the right man for the job, the Rangers support would still have been hoping that 2007 would bring a change in fortune for their under-fire manager. For the vast majority, the breaking point arrived on the very first day of the New Year when it was announced that Barry Ferguson had been stripped of the captaincy and would not play for the Club again whilst Le Guen remained in charge. As Rangers retuned to Fir Park the following day (scene of Le Guen’s first competitive match in charge), the travelling fans made their feelings clear as the manager stepped off the team bus to a chorus of boos and negativity. If the decision to jettison his skipper (and best player) seemed bizarre, handing the captaincy to Gavin Rae appeared to beggar belief. Without being disrespectful to Rae who was a fine player, the fellow midfielder had struggled badly with injury during his time at Rangers and had been used sparingly as a result. Yet to establish himself as a first team regular, he was now expected to command the respect of a dressing room that was clearly an unhappy place. Rae had been put in an impossible position through no fault of his own and it was a ludicrous decision which was completely unfair on the likeable Aberdonian.
When Kris Boyd converted a 70th minute penalty at Fir Park, he held up six fingers to the Rangers faithful in support of Ferguson (owner of the number 6 strip) as his team-mates celebrated with him. There was little doubt as to where their loyalties lay. Despite being reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Dado Prso, Rangers held on. The same could not be said for Le Guen and within 48 hours he had left the Club after less than 8 months in charge.
With stories emerging that Le Guen’s belongings had already been packed for some time in anticipation of moving home to France, the decision to axe Ferguson may well have been a deliberate act on his part to force the issue and thus hasten his departure. The fact is that within two weeks of leaving Le Guen was appointed manager of PSG having become the first manager in the history of Rangers to fail to complete a single season in charge. Whilst many feel that the Frenchman grossly underestimated the standard of play in Scotland and huge expectations from within Ibrox, there are those who argue that he was continuously undermined by Ferguson and several other senior players simply unwilling to accept a change in culture and methods. Perhaps the answer lay somewhere in between but, regardless, there were few tears shed when Le Guen’s time in charge ended. In stark contrast to Advocaat’s all conquering debut season in charge, the Frenchman left out the back door empty handed.
by Rick Plews
Paul Le Guen (2006 to 2007)
Following the public announcement in February 2006 that Alex McLeish would leave the Club at the end of season 2005/06, speculation immediately switched to who the incoming boss would be. For the second time under David Murray’s ownership, Rangers turned to Europe for a solution and by the following month it was announced that Frenchman Paul Le Guen would be in place for the start of season 2006/07.
At just 42 years of age, the former PSG midfielder had already built a reputation as one of Europe’s most sought-after coaches having led Lyon to 3 successive Ligue 1 titles between 2003 and 2005. Surprisingly, he resigned his position in the aftermath of that third success and, despite many offers to make a swift return, opted for a full year away from the limelight.
Just as when Dick Advocaat had joined in 1998, Le Guen would inherit a Rangers squad which had failed to land any silverware in the preceding 12 months. However, whilst Advocaat had been bankrolled to unprecedented levels 8 years earlier, the financial backdrop at the Club was now somewhat different. Alex McLeish had been forced to begin the downsizing throughout his time at Ibrox and this would certainly have to consider under Le Guen.
Perhaps the strategy was that Le Guen would be able to mould a squad of young players into a top side, thus moving away from a long-established policy of signing high profile players (naturally on large wages). The arrival of relatively unknown figures such as Dean Furman, William Stanger, Antoine Ponroy and Makhtar N’Diaye would certainly have seemed to support that view. A trio of signings from Austria Vienna (Libor Sionko, Filip Sebo and Sasa Papac) allied to the arrival of
U21 internationalist Karl Svensson (Sweden) and French talent Jeremy Clement accounted for much of the outlay whilst Manchester United loan signings Phil Bardsley and Lee Martin and goalkeeper Lionel Letizi provided some British identity and experience.
A fitness fanatic with a strong reputation for discipline, the Frenchman would soon be tested when former captain Fernando Ricksen’s behaviour fell well short of expected requirements on a flight to the pre-season destination of South Africa. Ricksen was sent home in disgrace, his Rangers career over before the Le Guen era was even underway. Whether or not there could have been any other outcome to this incident is debatable, but it was a difficult and unwelcome start for the new manager given Ferando’s popularity and standing amongst his team-mates.
The season started with a win at Fir Park as Motherwell were defeated 2-1 on the opening day of the League campaign, Sionko scoring on his debut in a match where Rangers at times played some impressive football. Charlie Adam would find himself in the starting XI and he would now establish himself as a first team regular. Trailing 2-0 in the first league game at Ibrox to Dundee United, Rangers showed character to battle back and earn a 2-2 draw. However, a second successive draw (this time at Dunfermline) already saw questions being asked of the new manager with new goalkeeper Letizi coming under scrutiny. A first league defeat came in September at Easter Road with Bardsley seeing red in the closing stages. Looking for a reaction in the next league fixture, there was not much evidence as Celtic ran out comfortable 2-0 winners at Parkhead (former Gers striker Kenny Miller adding insult to injury by scoring for the home side). After just 8 league fixtures, Rangers trailed Celtic by 7 points and domestically the signs were far from encouraging.
Star player Barry Ferguson had missed the opening months of the season recovering from surgery. Although back in the starting line up for those defeats at Hibs and Celtic, there was a feeling amongst the Rangers support that the fortunes of the side would improve as his match fitness returned. A strong performance (and goal) from the Rangers skipper in Molde gave the side the platform to qualify for the Group Stages of the now revamped UEFA Cup.
By the time Celtic came calling in December 2006, Rangers had suffered further league defeats to Inverness Caledonian Thistle (home), Dundee United and Falkirk in addition to crashing out of the League Cup to St.Johnstone at Ibrox. Of all the new signings, only young Jeremy Clement could be deemed to have consistently earned pass marks. Perhaps eventually bowing to fan pressure, goalkeeper Letizi had now been removed from the side and replaced with Allan McGregor.
A late equaliser from Brahim Hemdani ensured that the gap with Celtic did not extend further than the 16 points that already existed and the player celebrated with his manager in a show of solidarity. However, with only half the season played the title race was already over.
It would later emerge that cracks in the relationship between Le Guen and skipper Ferguson were evident as far back as October when Rangers succumbed to Inverness at Ibrox. Ferguson was naturally furious at full time and seemed taken aback at the lack of any reaction from Le Guen in the home dressing room at full time. Le Guen, it seemed, placed little value in the role of captain and did not welcome Ferguson’s input in terms of any post-mortem. A training session later in the same week would see Phil Bardsley removed from the session with Le Guen unhappy at the over-zealous nature of the Bardsley’s tackling. It was a decision that would undoubtedly have seemed alien to Ferguson and the Scottish players (in particular), Bardsley never again appearing in a blue jersey with his loan spell soon to be cut short.
If the domestic form was erratic at best, the opposite could be said in Europe where Le Guen’s side had looked assured with results having exceeded expectations. Rangers became the first Scottish Club side to win on Italian soil in European competition when they defeated Livorno 3-2 on a rain-soaked night. A late Kris Boyd goal would earn Rangers a credible draw in Auxerre (2-2) and allied to two home wins (versus Maccabi Haifa and Partizan Belgrade) in which no goals were conceded, qualification from the group stages was achieved. Perhaps the majority of players signed by Le Guen were better suited to the slower pace of continental football.
Although many had already reached the conclusion that Le Guen was not the right man for the job, the Rangers support would still have been hoping that 2007 would bring a change in fortune for their under-fire manager. For the vast majority, the breaking point arrived on the very first day of the New Year when it was announced that Barry Ferguson had been stripped of the captaincy and would not play for the Club again whilst Le Guen remained in charge. As Rangers retuned to Fir Park the following day (scene of Le Guen’s first competitive match in charge), the travelling fans made their feelings clear as the manager stepped off the team bus to a chorus of boos and negativity. If the decision to jettison his skipper (and best player) seemed bizarre, handing the captaincy to Gavin Rae appeared to beggar belief. Without being disrespectful to Rae who was a fine player, the fellow midfielder had struggled badly with injury during his time at Rangers and had been used sparingly as a result. Yet to establish himself as a first team regular, he was now expected to command the respect of a dressing room that was clearly an unhappy place. Rae had been put in an impossible position through no fault of his own and it was a ludicrous decision which was completely unfair on the likeable Aberdonian.
When Kris Boyd converted a 70th minute penalty at Fir Park, he held up six fingers to the Rangers faithful in support of Ferguson (owner of the number 6 strip) as his team-mates celebrated with him. There was little doubt as to where their loyalties lay. Despite being reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Dado Prso, Rangers held on. The same could not be said for Le Guen and within 48 hours he had left the Club after less than 8 months in charge.
With stories emerging that Le Guen’s belongings had already been packed for some time in anticipation of moving home to France, the decision to axe Ferguson may well have been a deliberate act on his part to force the issue and thus hasten his departure. The fact is that within two weeks of leaving Le Guen was appointed manager of PSG having become the first manager in the history of Rangers to fail to complete a single season in charge. Whilst many feel that the Frenchman grossly underestimated the standard of play in Scotland and huge expectations from within Ibrox, there are those who argue that he was continuously undermined by Ferguson and several other senior players simply unwilling to accept a change in culture and methods. Perhaps the answer lay somewhere in between but, regardless, there were few tears shed when Le Guen’s time in charge ended. In stark contrast to Advocaat’s all conquering debut season in charge, the Frenchman left out the back door empty handed.
by Rick Plews
