Walter Smith urges Rangers board to make decision on Graeme Murty

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Glasgow Rangers boss Graeme Murty is set to be in charge of the Ibrox side until the end of the season.

In comments reported by the Daily Record, Walter Smith has urged the Rangers board to make a decision on whether they want Graeme Murty to stay beyond this season as quickly as possible so planning can begin to catch Celtic in the Scottish Premiership.

Murty has been in charge since Pedro Caixinha was dismissed following a game against Kilmarnock back in October. And, coincidentally, it is after the weekend’s defeat to the same opponents that Murty is seemingly coming under the greatest pressure of his tenure so far.

The Gers appeared to be closing the gap to the Hoops at the top of the table a couple of weeks ago and there was even the suggestion that a win in the latest Old Firm game would have opened up a title race. However, the Light Blues came up short and followed that loss up by being beaten at home by Killie, and now face a fight for second place.

The camp keen to see Murty replaced when his contract expires in the summer appears to be the largest it has been since the turn of the year, and Smith urged the board to come to a decision on the 43-year-old’s future as soon as possible.

“They can close the gap, it can be done. However, this period between now and the end of the season is huge in terms of what Rangers must do as they head into the following season. This time, Rangers have to get it right,” he said, as reported by the Daily Record.

“If Graeme is the person they are going to give the job to, you would hope they would tell him sooner rather than later so he could start planning ahead.”

It does appear that it could quite easily be another summer of major change at Rangers one year after Caixinha’s pretty disappointing cull that only led to a couple of success stories.

Several players are on loan with the Gers so could perhaps return to their parent clubs, while the head coach’s future also has a massive question mark against it.

It must be difficult to provide clarity on the situation at this stage of the season, but it may be beneficial for next year if the board start putting the wheels in motion regarding their summer plans, as Smith suggests.