So that’s that, then. The Giovanni van Bronckhorst era, at Rangers, is over; the Dutchman fired just one week into the World Cup break. That stirring run to the Europa League final was, in a way, something of a flower in a desert; a rare bright spot in an era which included a domestic collapse, a number of heavy defeats to Old Firm rivals Celtic, that 7-1 thumping at home to Liverpool, and a Champions League group-stage campaign which made history for all the wrong reasons.
“I want to thank Gio for the hard work he has put in over the last 12 months,” chairman Douglas Park writes on the club’s official website. “And, especially, the achievements of taking the club to the Europa League final and winning the Scottish Cup last season.
“Unfortunately, recent results have not met neither our nor Gio’s expectations, and we have taken this difficult decision today (to let the Dutchman go). Everyone at Rangers wishes Gio every success in the future.”
With three weeks remaining until Rangers’ season gets up and running again – they are due to host Hibernian at Ibrox on December 15 – the Glasgow giants have time on their side as they scour the market for a replacement. Finding one, however, could be easier said than done.
Barak Bakhar is in no rush to leave Maccabi Haifa. Kjetil Knutsen, meanwhile, has committed his future to Bodo/Glimt. But he good news, as far as one member of this Rangers squad is concerned, is that whoever takes Van Bronckhorst’s place brings with him a fresh start and a clean slate.
Will Ridvan Yilmaz benefit from Rangers’ Giovanni van Bronckhorst sacking?
Since completing a £5 million move from Besiktas over the summer, Ridvan Yilmaz has played just 83 minutes of league football. The 21-year-old Turkey international is not the first talented young player to struggle in a new league and a new country. Nor will he be the last. But a dearth of first-team opportunities have hindered, rather than helped, his hopes of adapting to a new environment.
“We are continuing developing all our players,” Van Bronckhorst told The Herald in October. “Every player is different. For a player who is playing a lot it is more about going over the game and looking at what things they can improve in the game.
“For Ridvan, it is different. It is more about making sure he understands the tactics and knows where to be in certain moments. For him, that’s important.
“He didn’t speak good English when he came. He is improving that so he is able to communicate now with his team-mates. That is something you have to take into account as well before we let him play.”
There is no guarantee, of course, that Van Bronckhorst’s successor – whoever that may be – would be willing to throw Yilmaz in at the deep end, to find out whether he sinks or swims. But, after starting just one Premiership game in three months and with further opportunities hardly forthcoming, a new era at Rangers feels like a new beginning for Yilmaz.
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