Walter Smith has his say on current Rangers boss Graeme Murty

Follow us on Google Discover

Murty landed the job until the end of the season, but his only other managerial experience came when he oversaw six games for Rangers as caretaker.

Rangers legend Walter Smith, 69, has had his say on current boss Graeme Murty, who is currently overseeing the rest of the season following the club’s sacking of Pedro Caixhina.

Smith is the second most successful Gers manager of all time behind Bill Struth, having managed the Ibrox club to 21 trophies across two separate stints, including an astounding 10 league titles.

With Murty being in charge of a very different Rangers machine compared to that under the tenure of Smith, the former Scotland boss believes the current gaffer is doing well, especially considering the difficult circumstances in which he secured the position.

Prior to managing Rangers this season, Murty’s only other managerial experience came last year when he took over the club on a caretaker basis for six games.

In total, the former Reading man has overseen 23 matches with a win percentage of 61 per cent; not bad at all for a relative novice.

When questioned on how he thought Murty had handled being thrust into the role, Smith told PLZ Soccer that his experience with the Rangers youth teams will have stood him in good stead for the senior role, having been able to learn the ins and outs of the club.

“He was at the club at youth level so you get a feeling for everything that happens,” veteran Smith said.

“He’ll have experienced different feelings now he’s in charge, albeit to the end of the season, but he’s handled the situation well.

“From his perspective he’s got to look and say well here’s an opportunity for me and and opportunity he probably never expected to get at this stage of his career.

“He’s doing well just now so good luck to him and I hope he continues to do well.”

Murty and Rangers did remarkably well in January to land a number of high profile signings from down south, in their attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and league leaders Celtic.

The club made good use of the loan system to bypass their financial strains and are currently sitting in third place, 11 points off the top but only three points behind Aberdeen.

Should Murty continue his strong run and claim second spot, Rangers may well opt to stick with him as manager, as he is doing everything in his power to re-establish the feel-good factor that was so prominent in the days of the Smith era.