Pedro Caixinha (2017 to 2018)
A month on from the departure of Mark Warburton (during which time Academy Coach Graeme Murty had assumed responsibility of 1st team duties), Rangers announced the appointment of Pedro Caixinha as Manager on a 3-year contract. It would be fair to say that the Portuguese arrived at Ibrox as an unknown quantity and many supporters had reservations from the outset. If the Paul Le Guen “experiment” of appointing an overseas coach with no experience of football in the UK was an obvious comparison, it was not difficult to understand why those natural concerns existed.
As outgoing caretaker Murty led the side to an unlikely draw at Parkhead in his final match in charge (or so it seemed), Caixinha watched on from the Directors Box preparing to take over for the final 10 matches of the 2016/17 league campaign. Already trailing Celtic by a staggering 33 points, clawing back an 8-point deficit on Aberdeen was the only realistic target to aim for in the league. However, with an Old Firm Scottish Cup semi-final on the horizon, there remained the possibility of silverware.
Pedro’s first match in charge came on 18th March 2017, a comfortable 4-0 victory over Hamilton Academical at Ibrox. Successive draws against Motherwell and Kilmarnock were to follow. Youngsters David Bates and Myles Beerman were handed their debuts at Rugby Park as Pedro looked to freshen up the side despite limited options.
His first major test would come at Aberdeen and a late ‘smash and grab’ would provide Rangers with one of their largest wins at Pittodrie in recent times. Three goals in the final 11 minutes secured the victory although that 8-point gap remained intact. That last chance of silverware fizzled out at Hampden on 23rd April, Celtic comfortably winning 2-0. The result flattered Rangers, the tactics seemed unclear and the performance in stark contrast to the heroics of the clash just 12 months previously.
The chance to restore pride came just 6 days later at Ibrox when the two sides would meet again on League duty. However, it was a humiliating afternoon as Celtic ran out 5-1 winners and with Rangers seemingly in disarray. Whilst clearly only able to work with the players at his disposal, early signs were far from positive. Defeat by Aberdeen, thus ending an unbeaten home run that stretched back to 1991, added to the negativity. Players and fans seemed baffled by many of Caixinha’s decisions in the latter weeks of the season but the jury would be out until he had the opportunity to build his own side.
The board backed Caixinha heavily in the summer of 2017. Cardosa, Dalcio, Alves, Candeias, Herrera and Pena arrived under his recommendation whilst Rangers took advantage of free agent status to sign Scottish midfielders Ryan Jack and Graham Dorrans. In addition, Colombian striker Alfredo Morelos joined the Club with backroom staff member Jonatan Johansson believed to have been the driving force behind that move as a result of his links to football in Finland.
2017/18 would see Rangers compete in European competition for the first time in 6 years, drawn against minnows Progres Niederkorn of Luxemburg. Despite a narrow victory in the home leg, Caixinha’s side crashed out 2-1 on aggregate on 4th July 2017. Unsurprisingly, the Manager would face an angry and disillusioned travelling support when leaving the stadium at full time. It would rank as one of the worst results in the history of the Club and, in truth, the writing was on the wall for Caixinha before the start of the traditional Glasgow fair fortnight.
Despite another huge turnaround of players, Rangers remained as inconsistent as the season just passed. A League Cup SF defeat to Motherwell was perhaps the final nail in the coffin and Caixinha was soon sacked following a draw with Kilmarnock at Ibrox.
Less than eight months into the role, Pedro was sacked and Graeme Murty once again found himself placed in the hot seat.
The decision to appoint and bankroll Pedro Caixinha remains somewhat of a mystery and the feedback from players in subsequent years indicated that his reign was as shambolic as it appeared from the outside.
by Rick Plews
Pedro Caixinha (2017 to 2018)
A month on from the departure of Mark Warburton (during which time Academy Coach Graeme Murty had assumed responsibility of 1st team duties), Rangers announced the appointment of Pedro Caixinha as Manager on a 3-year contract. It would be fair to say that the Portuguese arrived at Ibrox as an unknown quantity and many supporters had reservations from the outset. If the Paul Le Guen “experiment” of appointing an overseas coach with no experience of football in the UK was an obvious comparison, it was not difficult to understand why those natural concerns existed.
As outgoing caretaker Murty led the side to an unlikely draw at Parkhead in his final match in charge (or so it seemed), Caixinha watched on from the Directors Box preparing to take over for the final 10 matches of the 2016/17 league campaign. Already trailing Celtic by a staggering 33 points, clawing back an 8-point deficit on Aberdeen was the only realistic target to aim for in the league. However, with an Old Firm Scottish Cup semi-final on the horizon, there remained the possibility of silverware.
Pedro’s first match in charge came on 18th March 2017, a comfortable 4-0 victory over Hamilton Academical at Ibrox. Successive draws against Motherwell and Kilmarnock were to follow. Youngsters David Bates and Myles Beerman were handed their debuts at Rugby Park as Pedro looked to freshen up the side despite limited options.
His first major test would come at Aberdeen and a late ‘smash and grab’ would provide Rangers with one of their largest wins at Pittodrie in recent times. Three goals in the final 11 minutes secured the victory although that 8-point gap remained intact. That last chance of silverware fizzled out at Hampden on 23rd April, Celtic comfortably winning 2-0. The result flattered Rangers, the tactics seemed unclear and the performance in stark contrast to the heroics of the clash just 12 months previously.
The chance to restore pride came just 6 days later at Ibrox when the two sides would meet again on League duty. However, it was a humiliating afternoon as Celtic ran out 5-1 winners and with Rangers seemingly in disarray. Whilst clearly only able to work with the players at his disposal, early signs were far from positive. Defeat by Aberdeen, thus ending an unbeaten home run that stretched back to 1991, added to the negativity. Players and fans seemed baffled by many of Caixinha’s decisions in the latter weeks of the season but the jury would be out until he had the opportunity to build his own side.
The board backed Caixinha heavily in the summer of 2017. Cardosa, Dalcio, Alves, Candeias, Herrera and Pena arrived under his recommendation whilst Rangers took advantage of free agent status to sign Scottish midfielders Ryan Jack and Graham Dorrans. In addition, Colombian striker Alfredo Morelos joined the Club with backroom staff member Jonatan Johansson believed to have been the driving force behind that move as a result of his links to football in Finland.
2017/18 would see Rangers compete in European competition for the first time in 6 years, drawn against minnows Progres Niederkorn of Luxemburg. Despite a narrow victory in the home leg, Caixinha’s side crashed out 2-1 on aggregate on 4th July 2017. Unsurprisingly, the Manager would face an angry and disillusioned travelling support when leaving the stadium at full time. It would rank as one of the worst results in the history of the Club and, in truth, the writing was on the wall for Caixinha before the start of the traditional Glasgow fair fortnight.
Despite another huge turnaround of players, Rangers remained as inconsistent as the season just passed. A League Cup SF defeat to Motherwell was perhaps the final nail in the coffin and Caixinha was soon sacked following a draw with Kilmarnock at Ibrox.
Less than eight months into the role, Pedro was sacked and Graeme Murty once again found himself placed in the hot seat.
The decision to appoint and bankroll Pedro Caixinha remains somewhat of a mystery and the feedback from players in subsequent years indicated that his reign was as shambolic as it appeared from the outside.
by Rick Plews
