Favourite named to be next Rangers manager as Celtic widen gap

Philippe Clement saw his Rangers side fall nine points behind Celtic and Aberdeen, after losing 2-1 to the Dons away at the Pittodrie Stadium. As a result, the Ibrox club finishing third in the Scottish Premiership is starting to feel like a real possibility now with the top two showing no signs of slowing down.

Clement is in an even worse position than Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Mick Beale had found themselves in before him. And we all know how it turned out for those two.

Clement’s early form as Rangers manager and the Scottish League Cup win now feels like a thing of the past. Most of their supporters have given up on the Belgian and under these circumstances, it would be a surprise if he remains in the Ibrox hot seat much longer despite being handed a long-term contract extension just a few months. A decision that seems even stranger in hindsight.

Now the question is, who will be the Rangers’ next manager? Well, the bookmakers have placed Derek McInnes as the favourite. Rafa Benitez is right behind him. There are also names like Frank Lampard, Gareth Southgate and Steven Gerrard further down the list.

Favourite named to be next Rangers manager as Celtic widen gap

One has to question whether just a change in manager can fix the issues at Ibrox. Their most successful one in recent years was Gerrard and even he won one trophy in more than three years in charge.

More changes might be required to turn the ship around at Ibrox. Of course, all of this is good news for Celtic.

For the first time in a while, they seem to have a genuine challenger in the league title race. But it is Aberdeen, who have gone toe-to-toe with the Hoops so far this season.