Rangers manager Ally McCoist, normally the most gregarious of characters, is suddenly looking his age. Gone is the twinkle in his eye, and the cheeky-chappie persona that even his fiercest critics have grudgingly admired in the past. Instead, a haunted, weary expression seems to have attached itself to the Ibrox boss’s features of late.
Little wonder. It’s nearly three years since Rangers’ financial meltdown, and the boardroom squabbles and money worries refuse to go away. Meanwhile, the team, despite boasting a wage bill the envy of every side in Scotland bar Celtic, is under-performing. Lagging fully nine points behind Championship leaders Hearts, they head into this weekend on the back of a humiliating defeat to Alloa Athletic in the semi-final of the Challenge Cup.
Until recently, McCoist continued to enjoy his status as a rock at the heart of the club he has served with distinction as a player. When the crisis of a few seasons ago unfolded, it was the manager who insisted he ‘didn’t do walking away’, however desperate the circumstances. Instead, he resolutely stood firm, and insisted he would lead his club out of the mire and back to the top tier of Scottish football.
To be fair, despite some embarrassing Alloa-esque stumbles along the way, McCoist has been true to his word thus far, having won two league titles. And as things stand he could yet deliver Premiership football next season, be that by toppling Hearts (which appears unlikely in truth) or via the play-offs. Plus of course, there is the prospect of a League Cup semi-final against Celtic to look forward to, even if most are predicting a torrid ninety minutes to come for his side.
McCoist, adept with the media in light of his television work over the years, (as well as the fact that many football writers north of the border have sympathies that rest with the Ibrox club) has cleverly played the game. He's batted away questions about the board and would-be investor shenanigans with the observation that such matters are not of his doing, and he is more concerned with matters on the pitch. And, of course, he won further plaudits by very publicly accepting a hefty pay cut, even if the remaining £400k a year would hardly leave him watching his pennies.
But suddenly things are changing. Many predicted that the recent investment (well, more a loan in fact, as a means of maintaining Rangers’ existence – again) into Rangers by Newcastle United’s Mike Ashley would come with a demand for a new manager. This hasn’t come to fruition – at least, not yet.
Worse for McCoist however, is the fact that many Rangers fans are turning against him, and openly calling for a new boss. For those fans, the goodwill banked by McCoist during and since the club was liquidated has now run out, and they want to see the back of him.
Through the recent match against Hearts, which Rangers lost 2-0 despite McCoist’s own declaration beforehand that it was a game they could ill afford to lose, many fans could be heard singing ‘Ally, Ally, get to ****.’ This wasn’t a rogue element occupying a handful of seats in the Tynecastle away end – more fans than McCoist would care to acknowledge joined in, and this sentiment continues to be expressed in various fans’ forums. Meanwhile, the swathes of empty seats that can be seen during matches at Ibrox speaks volumes.
Predictably, McCoist has maintained the position that he is going nowhere. Even this rankles with many, who maintain that the club simply cannot afford to sack him, so McCoist can simply hang on, and continue to pick up his salary regardless of results.
Then again, even the Ally McCoists of this world aren’t immune from unbridled criticism and, ultimately, dismissal. While it’s fair to assume that failure to gain promotion to the top flight this season would almost certainly lead to his removal, it’s now clear that McCoist might not last long enough to deliver that goal.
Once the fans turn against the manager in their droves, it’s a long haul back in terms of regaining their trust and respect. All McCoist’s hard-earned loyalty and determination in steering the team through troubled times and adversity (not to mention his standing as a club legend and all-time leading goal scorer) may have won him many admirers. But in the harsh world of football management, such misty-eyed sentiment doesn’t last forever.
As a wise man once said, football is a results business. And at a club like Rangers, losing streaks and managerial longevity don’t go hand in hand. McCoist may well discover that out for himself before too much longer.