Former Rangers boss Alex McLeish has ruled out becoming the new Director of Football at Ibrox.
Alex McLeish
Former Rangers boss Alex McLeish has told BT Sport (17/03/2017) that he wants to continue as a manager rather than become the new Director of Football at Ibrox.
The Gers have landed their new manager following Mark Warburton’s departure in February, as Pedro Caixinha was appointed as Rangers boss earlier this month.
Caixinha, 46, has brought coaches Helder Baptista, Pedro Malta and Jose Belman with him to Glasgow, but there is still work to do for Rangers after recent upheaval.
Not only is Caixinha looking for a Scottish coach to help him transition into his new job, but Rangers are hoping to appoint a Director of Football after Frank McParland left his role as head of recruitment upon Warburton’s exit, with somebody required to work closely with Caixinha when it comes to identifying transfer targets – a key role given how Rangers need to spend wisely to close the gap to Celtic.
As reported by BBC Sport, Southampton’s Ross Wilson has turned down the role, leaving Rangers to consider other options – and some have backed former manager Alex McLeish to take the job.
McLeish, 58, was one of the favourites to be name Rangers manager before Caixinha’s appointment, having won two league titles in four-and-a-half years as Rangers manager between 2001 and 2006.
General View of Ibrox Stadium
More recently, former Rangers hero Derek Johnstone told the Glasgow Evening Times that he felt McLeish – who has recently managed in Belgium and Egypt with Genk and Zamalek respectively – had the knowledge and contact network to be a success in the job.
However, McLeish has now told BT Sport that he still wants to be a manager rather than move into a Director of Football role, completely ruling himself out of the running for the Rangers role.
“I still feel that I’ve got coaching ability inside me that I want to try and get in with again, get into a club where I can maybe get success again,” said McLeish. “I want to be a coach so it’s a no,” he added.
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