Celtic loanee shares why it would be difficult for Rangers target Derek McInnes to take Ibrox job

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Rangers are reportedly keen to land Derek McInnes as their new manager.

Aberdeen playmaker and Celtic loanee Ryan Christie has told The Scottish Sun that he doesn’t think Derek McInnes will find it easy to leave Pittodrie in order to become Rangers manager.

The Dons picked up a 2-1 home win over Ross County on Saturday afternoon, with Kenny McLean scoring the winner from the penalty spot after Christie had cancelled out Michael Gardyne’s opener.

With Celtic only drawing 1-1 at home to Kilmarnock, Aberdeen have closed the gap at the top of the table to just one point – but it’s hard for Dons fans to get too excited just yet given speculation over the future of manager McInnes.

The 46-year-old has done a superb job at Pittodrie since arriving in April 2013, and his work with Aberdeen has unsurprisingly attracted admiring glances from other clubs.

McInnes snubbed Sunderland over the summer, but with BBC Sport reporting that Rangers have made McInnes their top target following Pedro Caixinha’s exit, Aberdeen are on red alert once again.

Given that McInnes was a midfielder for Rangers in his playing days, many feel that a return to Ibrox would be simply to good to turn down for the Scot, who is emerging as the favourite to replace Caixinha.

With rumours rife, Dons playmaker Ryan Christie – who is currently on loan from Rangers’ Old Firm rivals Celtic – has told The Scottish Sun that he would be surprised if McInnes left for Ibrox, suggesting it would be hard to leave the squad he has assembled.

Christie added that he doesn’t know whether trading Aberdeen for Rangers would be a step down, but he couldn’t speak highly enough of McInnes and the job he has done with Aberdeen.

“It’s part and parcel in football when one manager goes, especially with it being Rangers, our gaffer is going to be mentioned,” said Christie. “Would I be surprised if he left? I don’t know, to be honest. You’d have to ask him. Looking at it, yes, so far this season we’ve looked successful. We look like we have a good season in us. We look like we have the ability to go really far. In terms of how we are doing, this would be a hard squad to leave behind.”

“I don’t know. It depends on what the manager is thinking. If he thinks he can take them to second spot, then so be it. But I’ve loved working with him during the time I’ve been at Aberdeen. It’s a credit to him that we have maintained second place over the years,” he added.