Rangers boss Pedro Caixinha is looking to bring a local coach to Ibrox.
New Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha in the stands
Former Premier League manager Steve Clarke has told The Scottish Sun that he thinks Rangers boss Pedro Caixinha is making a ‘clever move’ in bringing in a local coach.
Caixinha, 46, was appointed as the new Rangers manager earlier this month following Mark Warburton’s departure in February, and he has been busy bringing coaching staff to Glasgow with him.
Helder Baptista, Pedro Malta and Jose Belman have all arrived at Ibrox to work alongside Caixinha again having also joined him in Qatar with Al-Gharafa, but one position remains open.
Caixinha is looking to bring in a ‘local’ coach with knowledge of Rangers and Scottish football, as five former Gers players have been interviewed for the job.
Barry Ferguson, John Brown, Peter Lovenkrands, Alex Rae and Jonatan Johansson have all been spoken to about joining Caixinha, helping him settle into life in Glasgow.
An appointment was expected before this weekend’s clash with Motherwell, but Caixinha is still deciding who to bring in – and his decision has been hailed.
Former West Bromwich Albion boss Steve Clarke served as a ‘local’ assistant to a Portuguese manager himself, as he joined Jose Mourinho at Chelsea back in 2004.
Ex-Reading manager Steve Clarke
Scot Clarke has now told The Scottish Sun that he thinks Caixinha is making a ‘clever’ move by bringing a local coach to the club, suggesting that a similar plan helped Mourinho – but noted that whoever comes in must contribute on the training field, not just with a knowledge of Rangers.
“It’s sound sense and it’s a clever move,” said Clarke. “A manager going into a new country needs a bit of local knowledge, no matter how good he is. But he has to bring in someone who can give him something on the coaching side too, not just someone with a Rangers connection. They should be contributing on the training pitch as well.”
“The other thing is that whoever he brings in has to be able to blend in, both with the squad that’s there and his own coaching staff. It can be a delicate balance and he has to be sure it’s the right guy. The new guy has to adapt to the manager, not the other way about. That was my mentality with Jose. I was going there to help him. I had to work around him. I had to pick up what he wanted and how he worked pretty quickly,” he added.
Who would you like to see Caixinha appoint?
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
