Usually, when a new manager arrives at a club – see Philippe Clement following his appointment at Rangers in October 2023 – there is a huge portfolio of evidence, history and previous work to filter through.
But, following Rangers’ decision to hand the reigns to Barry Ferguson as their interim head coach until the end of the campaign, the Ibrox legend returns to his old stomping ground with an air of mystery and intrigue surrounding his appointment.
Everyone knows Barry Ferguson the player in this part of the world. Relatively few, however, know Barry Ferguson the manager.
During his first press conference on Tuesday, speaking ahead of Rangers’ trip to Kilmarnock, Ferguson spoke about his desire to get Rangers winning again – his ‘main objective’ – while promising to give his all behind the scenes and also place plenty of trust in the club’s most exciting youth prospects.
But leave it to Paul Slane, co-host of the Open Goal podcast, to explain what life is really like under the five-time Scottish Premiership champion.
Barry Ferguson brings ‘outstanding’ training standards to Rangers
Slane played briefly under Ferguson during the 47-year-old’s spell in charge of Clyde back in 2015/16.
And while Slane’s spell at Clyde was short-lived, the ‘intensity’ and the ‘incredible presence’ of the former Rangers skipper clearly left a lasting impression on him.
“His training is outstanding. Its outstanding,” Slane recalls. “His intensity…
“[Training] was always different, genuinely, but with the same message. [A focus on] Possession, always very high intensity stuff, which maybe this side lack at times.”
You can say that again.
Rangers, throughout the final months of the Philippe Clement tenure, would spend much of their time plodding around the pitch with all the enthusiasm of a grumpy teenager being asked to tear himself away from his PlayStation and set the table.
If ‘intensity’ is the key word to describe Ferguson’s managerial style, then it is about the last word you could use to describe the way Rangers played in those humiliating home defeats to Queen’s Park and St Mirren which cost Clement his job.
“[Ferguson’s] presence is incredible,” Slane adds. “When he walks into a room, you can just tell right away.”
Ferguson joined by ‘great coach’ Neil McCann at Ibrox
Rangers heroes Allan McGregor, Billy Dodds and Neil McCann return as well as part of an all-new, and very familiar, backroom team.
This is Ferguson’s first managerial role since leaving Alloa Athletic in 2022. It has been even longer since McCann, the former Dundee boss, was in the dugout.
Yet, former Celtic, Aberdeen and Partick Thistle man Jackie McNamara sees no reason why this should prevent Ferguson and co from giving this Rangers side an almighty boot up the backside.
“It shouldn’t matter [that they haven’t been out of work for a while],” McNamara argues. “The game doesn’t change. It’s how he goes in and stamps his authority down on the players because the place needs a lift.
“How he puts his identity down because they are still in Europe, theres still an opportunity to go and get the next bit of that.”
Si Ferry, currently the assistant manager at East Kilbride, has heard some pretty exciting things about McCann too from former Dundee duo Cameron Kerr and Lewis Spence.
“Cammy Kerr and Louis Spence said Neil McCann is a great coach,” Ferry explains. “It was all about playing out from the back, dominating the ball.”
