The Gers have started the season in inauspicious fashion.
Former Rangers manager Alex McLeish has told BT Sport that he believes the club should give current boss Mark Warburton “a freebie” this season as they readjust to life back in the top flight.
The Gers have made an inauspicious start to the campaign, winning just two of their first six Scottish Premiership matches and suffering a stinging 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Celtic.
To make matters worse, controversy was sparked this week when the club suspended Joey Barton for three weeks following reports of a training ground altercation with teammate Andy Halliday.
Both the underwhelming results and the emergence of that furore have seen whispers begin to spread amongst Gers fans and the media that Warburton’s job could be under threat if things do not improve after the expectation amongst from some that they should be challenging for the title.
However, McLeish has insisted that such talk is “ludicrous” just six league games after promotion, and suggested that Warburton should be given a free pass this term.
The former Rangers boss told BT Sport: “I believe he should get a freebie this year. By that I mean he should be allowed to get a good, strong, solid Premier League season under his belt and then Rangers can build even further.
“I think it’s ludicrous to say Mark should be coming in and win the league, for instance, but Rangers fans expect him to be at least competing with the big rivals.”
Warburton may have McLeish’s backing, but everyone associated with Rangers will be keen to see the club put together a run of good form and climb up the table in the next few weeks to prove that they can indeed be competitive this term.
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