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A former Liverpool and Everton manager is reportedly keen to take over at Rangers
North of the border, Scottish Premiership giants Rangers are on the hunt for a permanent manager ahead of next season and a former Liverpool and Everton boss is said to have thrown his hat into the ring.
The Ibrox club sacked Phillipe Clement in February after a poor season domestically that has left them well behind Celtic in the race for the Scottish Premiership title. Barry Ferguson has been appointed on an interim basis until the end of the season but a decision on who will take over the club permanently has yet to be made.
It was reported by TBR Football last week that Rangers’ potential new American investors, 49ers Enterprises, wanted to bring Steven Gerrard back to Glasgow. The Liverpool legend managed Rangers before, as he left his position in the Reds’ academy to take up the Ibrox role in 2018. He won the Scottish Premiership in 2021 before being named Aston Villa manager later that year.
Benitez ‘wants’ Rangers job
Gerrard is not the only former Liverpool man linked to the role, as former Manchester United and Blackburn Rovers chief scout Mick Brown has claimed Rafael Benitez wants the job. The Spaniard won the Champions League and FA Cup with Liverpool while they also finished second in the Premier League during the 2008-09 season, as they picked up 86 points to finish four behind rivals Man United.
Speaking to Football Insider, Brown provided some of his knowledge of the situation around Benitez’s desire to take over at Rangers. He said: “Rafa Benitez has put himself in the frame at Rangers. He still lives in the north-west [of England], and whenever a job has come up in this part of the world, he’s been mentioned in the running for it.
“It’s been a bit of a running joke, in all honesty. But I hear he is looking for a return to British football, and that Rangers job is one he’s looking at. He’s talking his way into it, so it doesn’t come as a surprise to me that he’s interested.
“He wants the job and would happily take the job. Whether Rangers see him as a real contender is a different matter, though.”
Benitez remains divisive figure on Merseyside
Benitez’s historic Champions League triumph with Liverpool in 2005 instantly wrote the Spaniard into Anfield folklore. The Reds came from 3-0 down against a star-studded AC Milan team to win their fifth European Cup on penalties in Istanbul.
The Spaniard had a final season to forget at Anfield, as the Reds were knocked out of the Champions League in the group stage in 2009-10 while they finished seventh in the Premier League. However, it is the manager’s success at the club that is more frequently remembered than his failures. Given his relationship with Liverpool, his appointment at Everton in 2021 caught several people by surprise.
The Goodison Park faithful never took to the now 64-year-old, as he would leave after just 22 games in charge of the Toffees. Everton did win five of their first eight Premier League games under Benitez, drawing twice and losing once. However, a run of six defeats in seven games eroded any early credit he had gained as his final match in charge was a 2-1 loss to Norwich City. He was also in charge of one Merseyside derby in the Everton dugout, a game Liverpool won 4-1 at Goodison Park.
Related topics:Rangers
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