Ex-Rangers duo Boyd and Thompson provide bleak assessment of club

Rangers lost yet another Glasgow derby to Celtic yesterday; this time losing 4-0 as they were knocked out of the Scottish Cup at the semi-final stage.

Yesterday saw Rangers lose yet another derby game to arch rivals Celtic, as they were dumped out of the Scottish Cup 4-0 by Brendan Rodgers' champions. 

The game presented Rangers with a second chance within a month to try to put a stop to Celtic's hopes of a second consecutive domestic treble but, having been knocked out of the cup, the quest is no longer in their hands. 

In the last game at Ibrox, Rangers put in a very credible performance and even outplayed the Hoops at times, giving everybody the sense that the gap between the top teams has indeed begun to decrease.

However, yesterday's 4-0 annihilation will have been a reality check for the Gers, and arguably confirmed that Graeme Murty will not be retaining his job beyond the end of the current season, prompting a number of ex-Rangers players to have their say on the state of the club. 

Speaking to Sky Sports on 15 April 2018 following the completion of the game, Rangers legend Kris Boyd questioned the role of Rangers' director of football Mark Allen, highlighting the number of loan players as a real problem for the club going into the summer transfer window. 

"They've brought in a director of football, what is his role? What is he actually doing at this football club?," Boyd asked. "Because as it stands right now, the players that Rangers have got are on loan, will be going back to their clubs, there's a rebuilding process to go again. 

"Where does it go from here?"

The number of loanees will be a growing concern for Rangers fans as Jason Cummings, Russell Martin, Jamie Murphy and Sean Goss all are set to return to their parent clubs upon the completion of the current campaign. 

Fellow ex-Gers star Steven Thompson described the gap between the two Old Firm clubs as 'stratospheric' and went as far to say that his former side has not progressed at all under Murty, also highlighting the summer recruitment as a big problem for the club.

Speaking to BBC's Sportscene on 15 April 2018, Thompson said: "Today's performance underlined that there is still a stratospheric gap between the sides. 

"Despite Rangers thinking that they've gotten closer, they really haven't and there's massive recruitment required in the summer, not only on the pitch but with the manager as well." 

With two of the club's best players in Goss and Murphy set to leave, it is hard to see where Rangers go from here.

One thing is for certain, however, which is they must select  a top candidate for the managerial position as soon possible, to try to provide some stability at the club going into the summer transfer window.