In-form Rangers striker Antonio Colak has taken to his Instagram story to wish Giovanni van Bronckhorst all the best with a 10-word message – after the Ibrox club chose to sack their Dutch manager after a poor start to 2022-23.
It had been a successful start, coming in to replace Steven Gerrard who left for Aston Villa. He took Rangers to the Europa League final, losing only on penalties to Eintracht Frankfurt. He also masterminded a Scottish Cup victory.
But they remained second to Celtic in the Premiership, and that remains the case this season. With the World Cup break taking precedence, Rangers sit nine points behind their Old Firm rivals. The Champions League was a disaster.
A week into the break, Rangers have decided to part company with van Bronckhorst. Plenty has been said already as to who could replace him. Kris Boyd thinks Michael Beale is the “obvious” candidate, as he continues to impress at QPR.
One thing that could be levelled in favour of van Bronckhorst, is that the summer signings have not worked. One that has done, though, is Colak – scoring 14 goals. He said on Instagram: “Thank you for everything, I wish you all the best.”
Rangers striker Colak wishes van Bronckhorst all the best on Instagram
As aforementioned, if any of van Bronckhorst’s summer signings worked, it is Colak. His goals have come at a crucial time with Alfredo Morelos criticised for his attitude and fitness. The Colombian is out of contract next summer.
The likes of Ben Davies, John Souttar, Ridvan Yilmaz, Tom Lawrence and more have failed to show why Rangers signed them. But Colak has been excellent. He will have enjoyed his brief stint under van Bronckhorst, starting and scoring.
It will be interesting to see if Rangers do go down the route of luring Beale back to Ibrox, but this time as manager. Other names that have been mentioned include Peter Bosz, Sean Dyche and Ralph Hasenhuttl.
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