Rangers had a shortlist in place ahead of Steven Gerrard's departure to Aston Villa but will not rush into an appointment; Talks with candidates will begin this weekend with Rangers sporting director Ross Wilson heading the search; Van Bronckhorst is thought to be keen on the job
Wednesday 17 November 2021 21:27, UK
Former Rangers defender Giovanni van Bronckhorst is on the shortlist to succeed Steven Gerrard as manager at Ibrox.
Talks with candidates will begin this weekend, with Rangers sporting director Ross Wilson heading the search.
It is understood the Scottish Premiership champions had a shortlist in place ahead of Gerrard's departure to Aston Villa but will not rush into an appointment, with the league leaders keen to ensure they hire the right fit for the club.
Van Bronckhorst - who also played for Arsenal, Barcelona and Feyenoord - is thought to be keen on the vacancy at Ibrox and last May told Sky Sports "it would be a big dream" to manage one of his former clubs.
He led Feyenoord to KNVB Cup success in his first full season in charge, before sealing the Eredivisie title the year after - the club's first in 18 years. Van Bronckhorst went on to join Chinese Super League club Guangzhou City, where, after finishing 11th, he quit to return to his family.
Van Bronckhorst played for Rangers between 1998 and 2001, winning five trophies, including two league titles.
Gerrard left the Scottish champions to replace Dean Smith as Aston Villa manager, with compensation of between £3.25m-£4m agreed for the former Liverpool captain and his assistant Gary McAllister.
The former Liverpool captain had been in charge of Rangers since June 2018 and led the club to the Scottish Premiership title last season, ending Celtic's nine-year reign as champions.
Sky Sports News reporter Gordon Duncan:
"Van Bronckhorst is comfortably the frontrunner and the vast majority of Rangers fans are behind his appointment. He was a very popular player here in the late 90s and early 2000s and he went on to have a very good career with the likes of Arsenal and Barcelona.
"And crucially he has had managerial success as well, winning the title in the Netherlands with Feyenoord. So he would clearly be a popular choice and he does seem to be the frontrunner and time will tell if he is the man to take over from Gerrard."
Van Bronckhorst played for Rangers between 1998 and 2001, winning five trophies, including two league titles, before spells at some of Europe's elite clubs such as Arsenal and Barcelona.
After hanging up his boots at Feyenoord in 2010, the 46-year-old went on to join the coaching set-up under Ronald Koeman at the Dutch club, before taking full control in 2015.
He led Feyenoord to KNVB Cup success in his first full season in charge, before sealing the Eredivisie title the year after - the club's first in 18 years.
Van Bronckhorst went on to join Chinese Super League club Guangzhou City, where, after finishing 11th, he quit to return to his family.
It is understood that after a spell out of the game, he is now keen on a return to management.
Dutch football journalist Marcel van der Kraan on Sky Sports News:
"This is the perfect time for Rangers to snap Gio up.
"He's been with many great clubs in his coaching career, as well as his playing career - Barcelona, Arsenal, Rangers themselves. His coaching career has gone very well: five trophies in four years at Feyenoord, his hometown club, who had not won anything for years.
"It didn't work out in China because soon after he joined, the world was in the pandemic. They wanted him to carry on and backed him but he missed his family.
"Rangers is a club that has been in his heart ever since he joined. He thought it was a fantastic culture and atmosphere, he enjoyed great success there, he enjoyed every Old Firm; he said he's never seen anything like it in football, and working with Dick Advocaat was a great learning experience. He's still got a lot of friends there, he knows the set-up.
"What style of football would he bring? Attacking football. He's a big fan of 4-3-3, he likes to play with wingers. I don't think we'd see a very defensive approach. He's grown up with that attacking style."
Former Rangers forward Kenny Miller says Van Bronckhorst is a fine candidate to replace Gerrard as manager, but believes the Dutchman is just one of several viable contenders.
He told Sky Sports News: "On the face of it, Gio looks a good fit. He's had a lot of experience so far as a manager.
"He's a relatively young manager, obviously he's got a long history with the football club and had some successful years under Dick Advocaat.
"As a manager, he's won leagues, he's won cups, so he's had success and is a good fit. I think there's a number of potential candidates who are around at the moment who would definitely be interested in the job."
One man who remains available is Frank Lampard. The former Chelsea and Derby boss was interviewed for the Norwich vacancy before withdrawing from talks, as he does not feel the job is right for him at this stage of his career.
Asked whether Lampard could manage Rangers, Miller said: "Frank's had a lot of experience managing Derby in the Championship and taking them to the play-off final, and then taking over a massive club like Chelsea.
"He's felt all the pressures that come along with managing a big football club, so again, he's a good fit and a potential candidate."
Former Rangers striker Ally McCoist added: "He's another one who would interest us, absolutely. Very similar to Steven Gerrard, in fact.
"I think the great thing about it is he would grab the imagination of the Rangers support and has managed at an extremely good level."
