So who is running the second biggest institution in Scotland?
Rangers Chairman Alastair Johnston and manager Walter Smith can’t both be right after today’s revelations from Ibrox.
It’s not often that I would delve into issues involving our city neighbours but some stories are just too big to ignore and whether we like it or not what happens at Rangers has an impact on Celtic.
After the 1-1 draw with Hibs today Smith seemed to let the cat out the bag by repeating in separate interviews that ‘the banks are running Rangers
CLICK HERE to listen to Smith interview, 5 minutes in
“Now the bank have taken over the running of the club,” Smith stated clearly on Radio Scotland. “They’ll have their own ideas and obviously investment is not one of them so therefore we will sit and wait for an owner.
“There’s a stagnation about our club at the present moment, if you don’t buy a player for 18 months you get that. If that’s effecting everybody that’s the reason.
“The manager takes the responsibility for it all, I’m not ducking that responsibility, I have that and we’ll be trying to make sure that our results are the proper ones while I’m still here.”
That interview certainly sounded like Smith isn’t expecting to be at Rangers in the medium term never mind the long term.
Who Rangers bring in and what they do and say sounds very similar to the period in the early nineties when trust with the Celtic board had collapsed and the issue of boardroom change was far more important that cliches surrounding team selections or transfer targets.
Smith is a far more powerful figure at Rangers than Liam Brady or Lou Macari ever were at Celtic which will make the aftermath of today’s comments far more interesting.
Less than a month ago a new vision for Rangers was being portrayed by Chairman Johnston before he hurried back to the USA for a spot of networking to bring in some of his big-hitting contacts to take Rangers forward into a new era.
Johnston’s performance was far from smooth or convincing, especially when he moved into the area of finances and the banks involvement.
Last week’s appointment of two new Rangers directors, Donald Muir and Mick McGill, without Johnston’s knowledge according to some, would appear to throw new light on the issue despite Johnston’s soundbites.
On September 28 the new Rangers chairman said: “Given the fact that whilst the bank do not control the operation or the management of the club, it is no secret to the fact that we are, at this point in time, in a position of relying on external financing which is provided.
“We have a credit arrangement with the bank that has got various covenants in it, no surprise, to the extent that there are pre-determined covenants.
“We basically have to follow those criteria unless there are exceptions that we can justify.
“At this point in time the bank have been very co-operative and collaborative with the transition. If they were running the club per-se they would be here. I wouldn’t.”
I don’t think that Johnston really wanted to release that statement, until that point the issue of Rangers troubled finances was limited mainly to rumours, mainly internet fuelled.
By bringing the issue of the banks relationship with Rangers into the public domain Johnston gave credibility to the belief that under the new merged ownership of Lloyds/TSB/Halifax/Bank of Scotland finances have been severely tightened at Rangers.
Just how tightly that control has been applied is unclear although the lack of investment in the team this calendar year has been noticeable as has the issue of Smith’s contract.
Smith has given Rangers back credibility on the park since replacing Paul le Guen but at a price that the new bankers are clearly uneasy with.
Almost a dozen signings in the £2m bracket have put a heavy burden on Rangers with the wages that have accompany Kevin Thompson, Kenny Miller, Maurice Edu, Pedro Mendes, Kyle Lafferty, Steven Davis, Steven Whittaker, Madjid Bougherra and Steven Naismith.
Smith’s comments today will increase the spotlight on Rangers finances and the running of the club, there appears to be no easy escape from the clubs problems with even the once mighty Sir David Murray sidelined as the story unfolds.
Transfer windows and managerial contracts could become side issues as a much much bigger story unravels.
Johnston’s press conference at Rangers September 28