Rangers look set to appoint Kevin Thelwell as the club’s Director of Football ahead of new ownership taking charge at Ibrox.
Rangers are on the verge of a US takeover that will see 49ers Enterprises and Andrew Cavenagh take the reins at Ibrox after the ten year reign of Dave King and co in Glasgow’s southside.
Sky Sports are reporting that Thelwell has agreed to move to Rangers when his contract at Premier League side Everton comes to an end this summer.
The 51-year-old has spent three years at Goodison Park, with Thelwell’s performance at Everton admirable given the complicated financial circumstances on Merseyside.
Thelwell announced he’d be moving on earlier in the season after Everton were bought over by US backers in the Friedkin Group and he will now walk into a job at Ibrox.
His first task? Finding a new manager to take the reins at Rangers.
Kevin Thelwell hired Rangers-linked manager at Everton
Kevin Thelwell has experience hiring and firing managers as part of his job remit with Everton Football Club.
The former Wolves and New York Red Bulls chief has a strong CV and Rangers fans will be buoyed by someone of such pedigree coming into the job at Ibrox.
But Thelwell’s early tenure will be defined by who he selects to be the 20th permanent Rangers manager with plenty of chatter surrounding who could take the gig.
Jose Mourinho and Steven Gerrard were the talk of the Ibrox steamie last week, whilst Barry Ferguson will be hoping for a late push to convince the powers that be he deserves a place.
But there’s an outsider on the market who Thelwell knows very well in the shape of ex-Burnley and Everton manager Sean Dyche.
When Thelwell took charge at Everton, the club was being led by another Rangers-linked manager in Frank Lampard, who is now turning up trees at Coventry City.
In January 2023, Thelwell handed the managerial reins to Sean Dyche, who stayed in situ at Everton until he was sacked in January this year.
Replaced by David Moyes, who has steered Everton to mid-table Premier League survival, Dyche remains on the market and the links to Thelwell might well have Gers fans talking.
Sean Dyche was open to Rangers talks back in 2022
It’s not the first time Sean Dyche has been mentioned alongside the Rangers manager’s job with the ex-Burnley manager first linked back in 2022.
Having just left Turf Moor, Dyche was linked after Giovanni van Bronckhorst was sacked and admitted at the time he would be interested in taking over at Ibrox.
The gravel-throated Englishman, who is now 53, appealed to Ross Wilson for an invite to the Old Firm derby so he could get a flavour of life at Ibrox.
It made little difference in the end, with the Gers opting for Michael Beale instead.
“There is a window of opportunity (for the Premier League) and I think I’m still in it,” Dyche said.
| Sean Dyche’s Premier League record | |
| Matches | 333 |
| Wins | 93 |
| Draws | 91 |
| Losses | 149 |
| Win percentage | 27.9% |
| Points per game | 1.11 |
| Goals for | 469 |
| Goals against | 323 |
| Goal difference | 146+ |
“People say I’ve been out of the game for seven months but when you consider there’s three months of a close season then it’s like four active months.
“I’ve got a window of possible opportunity in the Premier League. If it comes my way then brilliant, if not then I’ll have to broaden my horizons.
“I do know Ross Wilson at Rangers and if he’d like to invite me to the Old Firm derby – I’ve never been – then he should. I’ve heard so many stories and I’d love to do it. I worked with Ross at Watford.”
