Glasgow Rangers now find themselves 12 points behind the Premiership leaders and their title challenge is effectively over before the Light Blues enter 2025.
The pressure looked like it was beginning to ease on Philippe Clement after some decent showings in the top flight, but the 2-1 defeat to St Mirren on Boxing Day could make his position untenable.
Giovanni Van Bronckhorst was sacked after slipping nine points behind Celtic in November, while Michael Beale was given the boot after his side trailed the leaders by seven points at the end of October 2023.
The question is, why hasn’t Clement been given his marching orders, despite being 12 points off the pace?
It doesn’t look like the Ibrox side will be winning the league title anytime soon and while Clement has certainly been at fault for the performances on show this term, can the downturn in results and performances be traced back to Beale?
The Englishman was given a large budget during the summer of 2023, yet he failed to add any true quality to the squad, with the club having to make cutbacks due to this lavish spending.
Michael Beale’s transfer record at Rangers
Steven Gerrard’s former assistant was appointed in December 2022 after the sacking of Van Bronckhorst, but he failed to lead the Gers to any trophies during his ten months in charge.
The signings of Todd Cantwell and Nicolas Raskin in January 2023 were looked upon as solid investments. Fast-forward a few months, however, and plenty of money was spent during the summer window.
Player
Club signed from
Todd Cantwell
Norwich City
Nicolas Raskin
Standard Liege
Dujon Sterling
Chelsea
Jack Butland
Crystal Palace
Danilo
Feyenoord
Cyriel Dessers
Cremonese
Sam Lammers
Atalanta
Leon Balogun
QPR
Jose Cifuentes
LAFC
Kieran Dowell
Norwich
Abdallah Sima
Brighton (loan)
Cyriel Dessers was signed for around £4.5m, while Sam Lammers – who had scored just five goals in the previous three seasons – arrived at Ibrox for a fee in the region of £3m.
Dessers is still at the club, but has failed to endear himself to the supporters, while the Dutchman lasted just six months before being sent out on loan. He joined Twente permanently in the summer.
It wasn’t just the incomings that Beale struggled to get right, as some players departed who really should have remained at the club.
Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent both left for nothing by running their contracts down, as Beale didn’t see a future for either of them in his team heading into the 2023/24 campaign.
Elsewhere, the manager sold Fashion Sakala and Antonio Colak, who had combined to score 30 goals between them during the 2022/23 season.
One piece of transfer business actually landed the Gers a massive profit, as Glen Kamara left Rangers after four and a half years to join Leeds United before the window closed.
How much Rangers paid to sign Glen Kamara
Midway through Gerrard’s debut season in charge of the Glasgow side, he was keen to further bolster his squad when the winter window opened.
Jermain Defoe arrived on an 18-month loan deal, while American midfielder Matt Polster linked up with the club, but it was the signing of Kamara which got the supporters talking.
At the start of the month, the Dundee star signed a pre-contract deal with the Gers, but with Gerrard seeking to add more reinforcements, a fee of just £50k was paid to bring him in midway through the season.
Hailed as a “monster” by the manager, Kamara turned into one of the finest pieces of transfer business conducted by the Ibrox outfit, especially with his impact on the field.
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Kamara stated that he was “shocked” the Gers were watching him before his signing, but the move didn’t turn out too badly in the end. That’s a certainty.
Glen Kamara’s Rangers statistics
The Finnish gem didn’t take long to settle into the heart of the midfield, missing just three games during the second half of the season, before playing a total of 39 times the following campaign, which was cut short by the Covid-19 pandemic.
During 2020/21, Rangers would win their first league title in a decade and Kamara was the beating heart of the team. He played 33 games as the club went unbeaten, with the former Arsenal starlet averaging a 91% pass success rate along with winning 59% of his total duels in the top flight.
It was evident that the team performed better with the player in the starting XI. He won the Scottish Cup the following season while scoring in the Europa League semi-final second leg against RB Leipzig, which helped secure a place in the showpiece.
His final season saw him slip down the pecking order, making just 18 starts in all competitions, and it became clear that Beale didn’t quite see a future for the player in his side.
Rangers hit the jackpot by selling Glen Kamara
With the 2023 summer transfer window approaching the final few days, Leeds United came in to make a late swoop for the midfielder, with an offer of £5.5m accepted by Beale.
On the surface, a stunning profit was made on the player, especially considering he cost only £50k four years previously.
Losing Kamara, however, despite his struggles the season before, meant that Beale lost a respected member of the club, and he couldn’t find a replacement in time.
The former Ibrox midfielder ended up making 42 appearances for Leeds United as they narrowly missed out on a return to the Premier League, ensuring another season in the second tier.
After a single season in Yorkshire, Kamara joined Stade Rennes in France ahead of the 2024/25 campaign, seeking out a change of scenery.
The move has worked out well, with the Finnish gem taking to Ligue 1 football with ease. While his departure meant the Light Blues secured a solid profit, many supporters would have liked to have seen the 29-year-old get a chance under Beale in the starting XI.
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