Manager Philippe Clement & Coaching Staff

Rangers will be my last job in football, says Smith

Video - Smith understands Alexander frustrations

Ally unveils £3.5m centre

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Rangers assistant manager Ally ­McCoist has opened a £3.5million sports complex named after him.

The former Ibrox and Scotland striker was at the Alastair McCoist complex in East Kilbride for the official opening ceremony.

The centre, which opened to the public last spring, was built on the site of the former St Andrew’s High School in the town.

After unveiling the official plaque of the complex yesterday, McCoist spoke of his memories of playing football in East Kilbride as a youngster.

He said: “I started playing here when I was nine and I can’t tell you how special those days were to me and a lot of my pals.

“It was a wonderful part of my life. I remember it like it was yesterday. Sometimes it would be absolutely freezing but the main thing you remember was the sport itself and running about playing with your pals.”

The 47-year-old hopes the centre can encourage children to use their foot on a ball a bit more rather than their thumbs on a games console.

“The biggest thing I would hope for this place would be to get the kids away from the Play­Stations, Gameboys and TVs and get them playing sports.”

He admitted achieving that is not going to be easy.

“I’ve got five boys myself and it’s a problem. If I didn’t get them outside they would sit and play their PlayStations. It’s the way society is, it’s the way they are.”

The centre has an eight court games hall, a new community room and outdoor third generation synthetic five-a-side football pitch.

There are also regular clubs for handball, basketball, badminton, table tennis and martial arts.

The focus this year will be to increase day-time classes aimed at pre-school children and their parents.

South Lanarkshire Council’s Jim Docherty said he was happy to have McCoist’s name in lights at the centre.

“We are delighted to welcome Ally here today to officially open the Alistair McCoist Complex, named in his honour as a great ambassador for Scottish football and one of East Kilbride’s local heroes,” he said.

“The complex greatly enhances the leisure facilities for the town of East Kilbride and this £3.5m investment has presented a fantastic opportunity for local residents to enjoy many sports within this multifunctional sports hall.”

ET

Durrant Tribute as boss celebrates 3 years back at Gers

by Lindsay Herron

Given his litany of success in two spells as Rangers manager it may seem strange that Ian Durrant has selected a defeat as Walter Smith's defining moment.

However, it is difficult to argue against Durrant's assertion that reaching the UEFA Cup Final in 2008 is Smith's greatest achievement.

Smith will officially celebrate three years back at Rangers this weekend and Durrant is in no doubt that Smith's second spell has been terrific.

He said: "It has been a fantastic three-year period for the club. Winning the trophies has been brilliant but there has been so much more to it than that.

"We have been involved in virtually all of the major incidents in that time the highlight of course reaching the UEFA Cup Final.

"That was a major boost for the club but also a feather in the Gaffer's cap. He had a great European run in his first time as Rangers boss but to reach a final might just be the pinnacle for him.

"The sad part, of course, is that we didn't go on to win the Final. However, I think it will probably rank as his greatest achievement."

Durrant suffered the pain of losing in his only match in charge of Rangers when he and Head of Youth Development Jimmy Sinclair took the reins for a Scottish Cup tie at Dunfermline after Le Guen left.

He may yet get the chance to experience it again in the future but back in January 07 he was more than delighted to move into the background and let Smith take over.

Smith arrived with Ally McCoist and Kenny McDowall as his lieutenants, the appointment of the latter raising some eyebrows as he had worked for Celtic's youth department for nearly 10 years.

Durrant, however, was more than happy with the arrival of all three.

He said: "I don't think there was a better man to come in and steady the ship than Walter Smith.

"He brought in Coisty who, of course, is a Rangers legend but on top of that he puts his heart and soul into his work because of his love of the club.

"He also brought in Kenny and although he used to work for Celtic I had known him from way back and I knew how big a Bluenose he was so it was great that he came in too at that time.

"The Gaffer then promoted me to the first team so he surrounded himself with people who had good energy and ideas. He seems to thrive off that and so do we."

The first target, of course, was to restore some cohesion and strength to a team that was miles adrift in the Championship and out of both domestic Cup competitions.

Le Guen had left Rangers with post-Christmas European football, but the priority for the new management team was to tighten the defence and make sure of a slot in Europe.

Two veterans from English football and the arrival of Kevin Thomson from Hibs helped them achieve that aim.

Durrant added: "The manager sat us all down and said he had the chance of bringing in Davie Weir until the end of the season and we all though it would be a short-term move - a stop-gap if you like.

"Of course, Davie has now gone through 100 SPL games for us and is captaining the side in tremendous fashion even although he will be 40 in May.

"The Gaffer obviously had Davie at Everton and I think Davie sees the Gaffer as a bit of a mentor.

"We got big Ugu Ehiogu in as well and the two of them held steady the defensive situation and the club got back on track again."

The first full season was very close to being the perfect season. History will show that an extraordinary fixture pile-up conspired against Rangers from achieving what would have been an unbelievable Quadruple.

They were beaten by a better side in the UEFA Cup Final by Zenit St Petersburg but better preparation might have produced a different outcome.

The league campaign was taken to the final day but Rangers, who won both domestic cups, ran out of steam.

Undaunted they delivered a League and Cup double last season and further glories surely lie in wait as we enter the new decade.

Of course, there have been major disappointments along the road most notably elimination from Europe by Kaunas and the poor run in the Champions League this season.

However, overall it has been a tremendous spell in difficult circumstances.

Durrant added: "I think the criticism of Scottish football in general is way over the top and the criticism of Rangers in particular is strange.

"If you look at what the club has achieved in the three years since Walter Smith has come back it is remarkable - especially in the current financial climate.

"Rangers are not just the only club or business affected by the recession and like everyone else we have to adapt.

"There have been a couple of times that I have tweaked the message he has given me when something has happened on the field and he has been alright with that. So he has given me a level of responsibility.

"I get the full package because I do quite a lot of the scouting and I go to look at other teams.

"Ally and Kenny do the same because the Gaffer has delegated more and that's good for all of us.

"We all know the club has financial problems but he just tells us to get on with our jobs and we are all aware that there are far worse things going on in the world that money problems at Rangers.

"He makes sure we all have smiles on our faces and I think the players react to that. He puts everything into this club.

"The players have responded by going out and showing their fighting spirit and in turn that has brought trophy successes.

"He is a fantastic man to work for."

"I accept that the performance in Europe this season was disappointing and, similarly, getting knocked out last season was a hammer blow.

"You expect criticism for that. However, we have been in five cup finals - including the UEFA Cup Final - and we are fighting on all fronts again this season with a lead in the league and the two cups to play for."

Durrant, of course, is the fourth man in the top team set-up and enjoys a close relationship with the manager on matchdays in particular when he acts as his go-between.

The former midfield star has to show his pace to get down from the main stand to the technical area and on some occasions the manager has over-encouraged him with a swing of the hand!

He laughed: "I love working with the Gaffer on a matchday - even if I have to wear a padded jacket now in case he lashes out.

"We bounce ideas off each other and I learn a lot from him. I have to hot-leg it up and down the stairs to ferry information to the bench at times but I have no problem with that.

Rangers FC

On the Up

Amid Rangers recent busy schedule Ally McCoist can scarcely believe that he is approaching the third anniversary of his return to Ibrox.

Since answering the call to assist Walter Smith in restoring the clubs fortunes in 2007 the Gers Assistant Manager has been a busy man.

But as he takes time to reflect on the job Smith and his backroom staff have done he sees a bright future ahead for the Light Blues as they look to build on solid foundations.

Having reached the final of every domestic cup competition since their return and guided their team to a European final to boot, it might seem like things have gone from strength to strength for Rangers over three years.

But McCoist admits there have been lows too with the disappointment of a final day championship loss in 2008 most prominent in his mind as he looks back over the last three campaigns.

However with that disappointment eased by the side lifting their 52nd league title back in May McCoist sees more positives to come in the coming months and, he hopes, years.

"I can't believe it has been three years I really can't," he admits. "It's been a whirlwind but it has been fantastic too.

"There have been some massive ups and downs, but thankfully at this moment in time there have been more ups I think.

"It's been a wonderful rollercoaster ride and it's certainly been three years of my life that have just flown by.

"I've cherished every minute though, and thoroughly enjoyed everything along the way so long may that continue."

Regardless of his own position McCoist will always be a Rangers fan with the interests of the club at his heart.

It is a huge part of why he and his coaching colleagues have opted to continue working without a contract.

McCoist and Kenny McDowall know just as well as their boss how important it can be for the club to have a degree of stability that was perhaps absent when the three returned to Ibrox 36 months ago.

But for all that McCoist is desperate to remain part of the setup as Rangers take the next steps in to a future that the former striker believes could be even more successful than the last three years.

He said: "The most important thing is the club and from that point of view we would hope to find a buyer because the club needs stability.

"It would be the ideal situation if I could stay on at the club in some capacity, but I genuinely mean it when I say we all want what's best for the club. That's the truth.

"Hopefully the club will get sorted out and I won't lie to you it would be great to be part of it still in the future."

It is a future that McCoist sees as a bright one with his side riding high in the SPL and ready to kick of the defence of their Scottish Cup.

And with a League Cup semi final in prospect next month there is plenty to look forward to for a squad of players that the former Rangers No.9 has seen grow in stature over his tenure as Assistant Manager.

McCoist sees in his players a new mental strength that was an aspect of the game he felt was missing from the squad when he arrived at Ibrox three years ago.

He said: "It was a massive challenge for us to take on because when we came back the club wasn't in the position that we would all hope it to be in as supporters.

"It has taken a little bit of time but the boys have certainly turned things round and they deserve credit for that.

"Certainly when we came in there was a little bit of a lack of confidence and the players weren't playing with the belief that Rangers players should have.

"But for those players to go on and reach a European final and win cups and last year win the league championship was great and I just hope they can continue to go in the positive direction that they are going in at the moment.

"It's difficult to pick one highlight from the last three years but I suppose it would be last season at Tannadice that stands out for me.

"If you ask the question of different people you will get different answers but I think winning the league was so important for the players.

"I felt they had deserved it the year before and obviously didn't get it.

"You can't argue with the statistics in the end and Celtic had the better of those but I felt the work our lads put in didn't bring the rewards they deserved.

"After the effort that went in to it I was really devastated for them more than anything although reaching the UEFA Cup final was a great achievement.

"But it was the way they rallied twice last season from seven points down to win the league that impressed me.

"I don't think I've been more pleased for a group of players than I was for the lads when they won that title last season.

"They put on an incredible run towards the end of last season and had some great performances to get the points to win the league title.

"It does take a certain mentality to do that and they have been over the course and gone the distance now so they know what is required.

"They know now what is needed of Rangers players and I would hope that will stand them in good stead this season and beyond that too."

Rangers FC

A Job Well Done

By Andrew Dickson

When Walter Smith returned to Rangers in January 2007, he said his aim was to steady the ship, make the team he had inherited more consistent then make it successful again.

Three years, four trophies and one European final later, it's fair to say he has achieved everything he set out to do when his second reign as the Light Blues' manager began.

Smith will celebrate 36 months back at the helm tomorrow with the start of his side's Scottish Cup defence at Hamilton Accies.

And as he looks back at what has unfolded on his third anniversary, it will be with a sense of satisfaction that he reflects on the way things have turned around at Ibrox.

When Smith was named as Paul Le Guen's successor, he took charge of a squad which was 17 points off the SPL summit and had already lost six league games in half a season.

Now, champions Gers are seven points clear at the top - albeit having played once more than Celtic - and they've been beaten just three times in their last 46 domestic matches.

Despite a difficult financial situation, they remain in a healthy position on the park and as well as being title favourites at this stage, they could also win both cups this term.

It is to the credit of Smith and his coaches that despite a worsening general economy, they've taken Rangers back to the top of the Scottish game and kept them there.

But the Ibrox boss is adamant it's not just about the management and insists his playing staff have every right to be pleased with what they've done so far too.

Smith said: "When you're top of the league, it's always a good position to be in regardless of how big an advantage you have.

"There's always an air of caution of course because over the last couple of seasons, Rangers and Celtic have both had leads that have been pegged back by the other.

"This season, we're looking at Dundee United and Hibs putting in good challenges too and that means points will be dropped.

"The nicest thing is to be top of the league but the most important thing is that we're going to have to work extremely hard to stay there.

"Things still aren't at the level I'd expect them to be at after three years but there are circumstances in the background which dictate that to be the case.

"It hasn't all been quite as straightforward in that respect as we'd like. For example, we haven't bought a player for 18 months now.

"We'll not get one in January either so when the season finishes, that will be a period which will extend to two years in August. That's an unusual circumstance for Rangers.

"When you consider that, a lot of credit should go to everyone who's been here. They've knuckled down and while we've had some disappointments, they've overcome that.

"Things didn't go the way we wanted them to in Europe this season and we didn't handle ourselves nearly as well as we did the previous time we were competing at that level.

"But domestically, we seem to be getting back on course again now and that has been pleasing in recent weeks."

Smith's first 14 months back in Govan were quite remarkable. While he was expected to bring Rangers closer to Celtic, even he couldn't have foreseen what would happen.

The half season he had after Le Guen's departure was good in that both Old Firm derbies were won, the points gap was reduced to 12 and just two more defeats were suffered.

In turn, Gers qualified for the preliminary rounds of the Champions League and doing so was to spark an adventure the most optimistic of fans could never have seen coming.

Having reached the group phase and finished third in their pool behind Barcelona and Lyon, the Light Blues moved into the UEFA Cup after Christmas.

They were to charge through that competition in stunning fashion, defeating Panathinaikos, Werder Bremen, Sporting Clube and Fiorentina to reach the final.

Sadly that game was one match too far for them as Zenit won 2-0 and it was a disappointing climax to the season, with the SPL also eluding them on the last day.

The sheer volume of games Rangers had to contend with - 68 in all - was just too much for them and they only had the Scottish Cup and League Cup to show for their efforts.

Even so, Smith's men were back as a force and last term they made up for that missed championship by winning the title last May and retaining the Scottish Cup.

That gave the manager so much satisfaction - but there's also still a hint of regret at how the 2007/08 campaign finished.

Smith added: "I don't think it's possible to take over in the situation we came back in and think everything is just going to go the way we want it to.

"There were always going to be ups and downs along the way. That's how it is in football at the present moment.

"When we came in, the team was only a couple of points away from being fourth in the league and we had to work very hard to pick up the group initially.

"We managed to get into second and that gave us qualification games for the Champions League.

"What followed was a remarkable year where the players we had worked as hard as they possibly could to be successful.

"There was a situation where everything in Europe went for us and we came within a couple of games of enjoying one of the club's finest seasons.

"When you look back over the year before, when we were taking over and weren't in the Scottish Cup or doing that well in the league, progressing from that was great.

"To have achieved what we did in getting to the UEFA Cup final was terrific for everybody at the club. It was a fantastic time to be involved with Rangers.

"Losing out to Zenit then missing out on the league to Celtic, with an unprecedented number of games, was a huge disappointment.

"It was one we didn't really deserve for the amount of work we put in over the season and there was a raft of circumstances that made it very awkward for us.

"If we'd achieved everything we set out to achieve that year, it would have been an unbelievable experience."

The impact of missing out on both the UEFA Cup then the SPL was clear in the months that followed for Rangers.

It probably took them the rest of 2008 to get over it and find their feet again but in the time since, their form domestically has been very good.

Smith said: "In my own mind, when you have that type of season there is always going to be a situation the following year where it's difficult to live up to the standards you set.

"Obviously we lost out in the Champions League qualifiers to Kaunas and we struggled in the early part of the league.

"There was a situation where, from a management point of view, it was a hard task to get everybody up and running again.

"Around Christmas and new year, we were starting to settle down but we lost the Old Firm derby and went seven points behind Celtic.

"Since that happened just over a year ago, we've only lost three games domestically and that has been a terrific achievement for the boys to do that.

"They finished last season with a league and Scottish Cup double which was great and we're in a situation where we've finished our third year at the summit.

"Looking back, we can be pleased with the way everything has gone. We've won four trophies, reached a European final and are top of the league now."

In the three years Smith has had back at Ibrox, several players have come and gone with each playing his part.

Fans will pinpoint the likes of Carlos Cuellar, Madjid Bougherra, David Weir and Steven Davis as being amongst the best of the new recruits.

But Smith himself has never been one for picking out individuals and he has no desire to start doing so now.

In keeping with the strong team ethic his squad has, he's far happier to distribute his praise more evenly.

Smith smiled: "When you're looking at the signings we've made, there are players who have come in and done extremely well over the period for us.

"It's not right for me as a manager to say there's somebody I consider in particular to be my best signing in the last three years.

"What I would say is that we've had more good ones than bad ones and that, in many ways, is a reason we've had as much success as we've had.

"What has been disappointing for me, along with the fact we've not bought someone in a while, is that we've lost one or two players we didn't want to lose as well.

"Alan Hutton and Carlos Cuellar were sold and that was a bit of a blow for us. It still is and we'd have liked to keep them at the club for as long as possible.

"Players coming in and out is part of football though and we've been happy with the boys who have come in. We've been fortunate in that they've done an excellent job overall."

Rangers FC

Video - Smith takes consistency over new players at Rangers

Was Walter leistet ist unglaublich! Seit einigen Tagen ist er nun endlich auch für die letzten Nörgler zur Rangers-Legende geworden. Er ist der einzige da oben von den Bossen (selbiges gilt auch für Ally), der die Rangers im Herzen trägt.

Video: The Walter Smith Cup Final Day
Video: Walter Smith 'Fix you'

Der Mann hat einfach Klasse!

Walter Smith zu der aktuellen SR-Diskussion in Schottland. Einfach nur gut und vor allem auch richtig.

A Ridiculous Level
Rangers manager Walter Smith weary of referee criticism

Ein paar herrliche Bilder der letztjährigen Meisterfeier von Walter, Durranty und Ally.

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Walter Smith - Cat with nine lives

By jim Traynor on Mar 22, 10 06:39 AM in co-operative insurance cup

A statue in honour of Walter Smith? No chance. That would just be the height of madness.

And disrespect.

Rangers, and whoever ends up owning them, owe this manager much more than a sculpted chunk of granite.

Especially after two of his players were guilty of monumental stupidity yesterday to leave Rangers staring at Hampden humiliation.

But Smith was sparked into action and took control of an afternoon which was careering away from them.

It was Kenny Miller who scored the only goal of the Co-operative Insurance Cup final seven minutes from the end, but it was Smith who won it.

No, this wasn't Rangers' Cup Final. It wasn't St Mirren's Final either. This was Smith's Final.

No one worked harder than him to secure the club's 26th League Cups after 33 finals. The 62-year-old brushed aside the pressures, waved away tension and got the job done.

Smith proved again that he - and no one else - has been holding this team, this club together for the past three-and-ahalf seasons.

It is doubtful if any other manager could have stepped to the very edge of a technical area as his team teetered on the brink of calamity and galvanised them the way Smith did late afternoon at the National Stadium.

When every other Rangers fan - and probably also all of the players - thought it was over, that St Mirren would claim the trophy for the first time in their history, Smith strode to the front and took command of a dire and desperate situation.

His side were reduced to nine men - that's NINE - with Kevin Thomson sent off for a lunge at his namesake, Steven, in 53 minutes.

Saints fans, who had been fantastic from the very start when it quickly became obvious their side were better and more committed, sensed this would be their day and with 20 minutes remaining they believed completely.

Danny Wilson was beaten by Craig Dargo - a substitute for Billy Mehmet only a minute earlier - and the Ibrox defender pulled at his opponent's arm. Referee Craig Thomson fished out his red card again and Rangers' fans feared the worst.

A fair number of them howled again at the ref. The rest of them were dumbstruck. The players who were left looked at one another in disbelief. How could they survive now? The Final was lost, the Treble gone. But while everyone else were bereft of answers and Gus MacPherson was urging his players to step up and grab their moment of glory one man took it upon himself to do defy the Saints and the odds.

Smith, who had started the second half with his side playing 3-4-1-2 to combat the opposition's 3-5-2 which had dominated the first 45 minutes, was forced again to change.

Actually, it was his third switch because he had gone to 4-4-1 after Thomson's dismissal, but when Wilson departed he had to opt for 4-3-1. He also altered the personnel, taking off Kris Boyd in 78 minutes to get Steven Naismith on to pump new life back into Rangers. It worked superbly well and remarkably Rangers started to perform for the first time in this final.

Suddenly they found fresh impetus and with that came greater belief. From the side of Hampden's pitch Smith loomed larger than Michael Higdon had he been standing on John Potter's shoulders.

Suddenly, Rangers responded.

He howled. He gestured. He urged. He drove men running on empty both physically and mentally. He refused to accept this cup would be going anywhere other than Ibrox.

Under the most extreme circumstances, Smith proved he is the heart and soul of this Rangers side.

Although he has never been more animated than he was in the second half, it is his calm logic and understanding which has held his club together.

The new owner might yet be Andrew Ellis, whose people are still scanning Rangers' books, or it might be someone else, but no matter who takes over it would be folly to allow Smith to leave.

Without him Rangers would not be away out in front at the top of the SPL and they would not have won the Final. And Rangers would not be homing in on another Treble.

He has had his critics among Rangers' legions but when he was presented with the trophy at Hampden yesterday every fan rose to acclaim him.

Finally, they knew. Finally, they recognised a manager who is bigger than anyone else, a man who is larger than life.

The sheer strength of his will swept across Hampden and seeped into the heavy and drained limbs of his nine men. They found hidden reserves and started to break out of defence. He and they knew they wouldn't survive extra time, that an added half hour would have been too much. This final had to be won in 90.

So, seven minutes from time Naismith was released on the right. Miller and Nacho Novo sped up in the middle and on the left. St Mirren, despite having two extra men, were caught three on two.

Naismith looked up, clipped a delightful ball into the middle and Miller skipped into the air. His header was perfect. Poor Paul Gallacher leapt and tried to get a gloved hand on the ball but the direction was excellent. Miller wheeled away pursued by a posse of delirious players while Smith's clenched fist punched the air. MacPherson looked at the ground. It refused to open up for him. His players couldn't believe it. They had one hand on the damn thing. It was there for them. There for the taking, but they didn't quite have the reach.

Nor the belief despite that first half. MacPherson, Gallacher, Ross, Carey, Barron, Mair, Potter, Murray, Brady, Mehmet, Thomson, Higdon, and substitutes Dorman, Dargo and O'Donnell will have to live with this nightmare for the rest of their lives. This group will never come so close to glory again. Ever.

Yet somehow they will have to pick themselves up to see out the remainder of the SPL season and shake offthe spectre of relegation, but survival will never make up for what happened to them at Hampden.

And perhaps no other Hampden final will ever \ be sweeter for Smith.

A statue? Don't be daft.

His profile carved out on the Campsie Hills overlooking Murray Park wouldn't even cover it.

An end to Rangers' financial concerns and a promise of money for the next group of players would just about do it though.

DR

Walter Smith needs assurances if success is to continue

Walter Smith will receive the silverware this Sunday, but will he get the answers?

The weekend ahead promises to be one of the most crucial in Rangers’ history, as a behind-the-scenes search for clarity on the future goes on, against the backdrop of the club’s first home SPL trophy presentation day in seven years.

Smith is becoming an increasingly frustrated figure, and justifiably so. None of us, try and probe as we might, are likely to find out the full extent of the fires he’s been fighting in the past year or so.

But the clock is now ticking on the most important issue at any football club – just who is the manager going to be?

Unless Smith is given guarantees in the next few days that there will be funding to repair a squad that has been hacked at and systematically downsized over recent transfer windows, then he is almost certain to walk.

And who could blame him? He has been happy to operate without a contract from the end of January until now, just in case a new owner arrived and didn’t fancy him, thus removing any compensation bill to bring in a new man.

But isn’t Smith entitled to now put himself first over club politics? After everything he’s given to Rangers, over many years and not just this second spell, he has earned the right to be treated in a far better way than this.

He knows the problems and the issues. In fact, he is the man who has brought many of them into the public domain.

More than that, Smith has continued to drive the message in bold red warning letters to the heart of the supporters – many of whom still appear to be in denial – much to the annoyance of faceless men who have barked orders behind the scenes that he should be silenced.

He was one man they could not control, and they dared not push him too far given the chaos that would have ensued had Smith departed during Rangers’ title defence.

But his patience is now being tested. And if he does go as a result of more financial restrictions being imposed – and as of yet budgets have still to be agreed between Rangers and Lloyds – then there could be an almighty backlash from a support which holds him in as high esteem as they have done at any time in his two tenures.

For instance, last Friday – after a week in which the club was again rocked by in-fighting in the wake of revelations that a tax investigation was being conducted with regard to payments made into players’ off-shore accounts – Smith met the press to reiterate the need for investment and a plan to take Rangers forward.

Almost as he was speaking, Sir David Murray was announcing to the BBC there would be a ‘limited’ budget for players, which was in stark contradiction to his successor Alastair Johnston’s revelations days before that they still had to meet Lloyds to discover what the business plan would be, a process that will begin next week.

With those kind of mixed messages, what chance does Smith have? He has pencilled in 16 players for next term, including the injured Andrius Velicka, two goalkeepers, and two kids in Danny Wilson and John Fleck. He knows that will simply not do.

The business plan must identify what will happen to the £55,000 per week that would be freed up from the possible exits of six out-of-contract players – Davie Weir, Kirk Broadfoot, Kris Boyd, Nacho Novo, Stevie Smith and DaMarcus Beasley.

Smith knows he needs at least six new players. Does he get that money? Does he get hard cash for transfer fees? And how much? What level of player is he pitching at? These are the issues he must have resolved before any call can be made on what he does next.

In the midst of all this, Smith also had to cope with the revelations attributed to would-be buyer Andrew Ellis, who was forced to break cover when the content of his chance meeting and blether with a Sky TV presenter ended up becoming public knowledge.

Smith would be offered a new three-year deal, Ellis said in a hurried public declaration, adding that he would offer a life presidency title to Sir David should he gain control – which he hoped would happen in three to four weeks.

Clearly irked, Smith’s response to this was that “maybe the chap concerned should speak to me first before speaking about me”.

Given the men have never shared a conversation, just what was Ellis thinking about?

That episode has only added to Smith’s frustration. But there are two key situations at Rangers right now.

Firstly, the immediate future of the manager and the budget for next season with, as we have revealed, senior figures inside the club still fearful of what conditions the bank will try to impose when Johnston meets them face-to-face at the start of next week.

Secondly, the ownership issue, which is no further forward. As we stated last week, there are many inside Ibrox who simply do not believe Ellis will follow his interest through, unless there is some hidden business going on behind his proposed takeover that has yet to be unearthed.

Time will tell on that, but he has no plans to meet Johnston in the immediate future according to his people, which does appear strange. As does his lack of urgency in calling Smith.

Ellis, in fact, is close to being bracketed in the “put up or shut up” category that was outlined by Murray in reference to other interested parties last week. But will any of them?

The ownership issue, however, is of less immediate concern to Smith. Assuming the budgetary issue is resolved to his liking, then the matter of finding a new owner would be no more than a sideshow, a bearable distraction.

It would have no material effect on his day-to-day running of the team, as long as he has the appropriate financial plan laid out, guaranteed, and is allowed to manage without interference.

Smith simply wants to know what Rangers 2010 will look like – then he can make a decision.

While he wants to see the club’s long-term future resolved as much as anyone, it’s what he will have to play with in terms of his team for next season that holds the key right now.

Undoubtedly, people like Johnston, chief executive Martin Bain and the supporters want to see Smith given the resources to rebuild and strengthen a team that has won six trophies in three years.

Unfortunately, they don’t hold the key to that. The bank do. And given their actions over the past 18 months, will they sanction what Smith needs?

If they don’t, things may be about to get a lot messier – and the most important man of all could be lost in the fall-out.

ET

Bank talks could lead to Walter Smith’s D-day over Rangers future

Walter yes or no in 48 hours

Official Site

Exclusive - Walter Stays!

by Lindsay Herron

Walter Smith is staying on as Rangers manager for one more year and then he will hand the reins over to Ally McCoist and Kenny McDowall.

Smith and his backroom team all agreed new deals today. The contracts were signed tonight at Murray Park with Chief Executive Martin Bain and it ends weeks of uncertainty and worry for the Rangers supporters.

Smith, McCoist and McDowall had all been working without contracts since January and there were fears that they may leave the club this summer.

However, the men who delivered back to back SPL titles will be on board for the charge for three in a row next season.

Smith said: "I am wholly committed to managing the Club next season and when it comes to the end of next season I firmly believe that Ally and Kenny would do a great job and I am glad everybody at the Club shares that view.

"I have given this decision a great deal of thought.The next season holds many challenges for everyone at the Club and I would hope that with the backing of everyone - supporters, management and staff - we can pull together as a Club and continue to achieve at least the levels of success we have enjoyed over the last few seasons.

"We have big challenges ahead, on and off the field, but we are all Rangers men at heart and are looking forward to going for our third league title in a row and playing in the Champions League."

Chairman Alastair Johnston said: "I'm sure, like myself, every Rangers fan across the world will be delighted by the football management team's decision.

Rangers FC