Rangers Chairman Insists Club ‘Didn’t Screw Up’ Head Coach Appointment

Cavenagh Defends Process as Danny Rohl Takes the Helm at Ibrox

Rangers chairman Andrew Cavenagh has moved to defend the club’s handling of their recent head coach search, insisting the process that led to the appointment of Danny Rohl was not the “screw-up” some critics have suggested. While acknowledging the process “looked clunky” from the outside, Cavenagh was adamant that the internal approach was structured, deliberate, and ultimately successful.

The Ibrox club appeared to flirt with both Steven Gerrard and Kevin Muscat before settling on Rohl, a 35-year-old German coach widely regarded as one of Europe’s brightest young managerial prospects. The twists and turns of the saga drew intense media scrutiny, with supporters and pundits alike questioning whether Rangers had lost control of the situation.

Cavenagh, however, pushed back strongly against that narrative, saying the club’s leadership team—chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell—had worked tirelessly and effectively throughout.

“I think the misconception that’s out there is that somehow Patrick and Kevin screwed it up,” Cavenagh said in a frank interview addressing the speculation. “I was involved in every single telephone call, every single meeting, every minute with both Gerrard and Muscat. I don’t believe they didn’t come because they didn’t like Patrick or didn’t want a sporting director. It just came down to timing—on their part and, to some degree, on ours.”

As the chairman explained, while conversations with Gerrard and Muscat were ongoing, the club had quietly re-engaged Rohl behind the scenes—a move that would ultimately prove decisive. “While that was going on, we had obviously reengaged with Danny, unbeknownst to people,” Cavenagh said. “Our focus now isn’t on who didn’t come. It’s on who did come—and we’re incredibly happy that Danny Rohl is the head coach of Rangers Football Club.”

From the Outside, It Looked ‘Clunky’

For many fans and observers, the managerial search seemed chaotic—a drawn-out process punctuated by leaks, rumours, and apparent false starts. Reports suggested Gerrard was all but confirmed to make a sensational return, while others had Muscat, formerly of Yokohama F. Marinos, already preparing for Glasgow.

Cavenagh admitted that from a public perspective, the operation may not have looked smooth. “There’s asymmetric information—what’s out in the press versus what is actually happening,” he said. “It looked clunky from the outside perspective. It wasn’t at all clunky from our perspective inside the club.”

In other words, while social media and newspapers speculated wildly, Rangers’ leadership was quietly managing a multi-track recruitment process that, by design, never had a single “leading candidate.”

Gerrard and Muscat: The Ones That Got Away?

Much of the media focus centred on two names: Steven Gerrard, the former Rangers boss who led the club to their 55th league title in 2021, and Kevin Muscat, the Australian coach whose attacking football in Japan had impressed observers.

But Cavenagh was keen to clarify that the club was not fixated on either of them. “We didn’t rank people one, two, and three,” he insisted. “We had ten days, tops, to get a coach into the building, so we pursued all five candidates simultaneously.”

Indeed, Cavenagh revealed that Rangers held talks in London with several coaches beyond the high-profile trio of Gerrard, Muscat, and Rohl. “We interviewed a number of great candidates,” he said. “We spoke to a number of other candidates that you’ve never heard about. When we left London, I told our group how happy I was that we had five candidates—five I was extremely comfortable could be great coaches for Rangers.”

When asked why negotiations with Gerrard or Muscat ultimately fell through, Cavenagh described both situations as “complicated.” Neither man, he suggested, turned Rangers down because of the club’s structure or leadership.

“They’re halfway around the world, they have families, they’d have to move, they’re coming in mid-season,” he explained. “So, what you’re trying to do with every candidate is just constantly move the ball forward and figure out, ‘Can we make this happen?’ And again, we were doing that with five different people at once.”

‘No One Was Offered the Job’

Another key point Cavenagh sought to make was that no formal offer had been made to any coach before Rohl’s appointment.

“Was anybody offered the job? The way it works isn’t like that,” he said. “You don’t have a big ceremony and send somebody a letter with a bow on it. You’re working on a whole bunch of different details at the same time.”

The American chairman emphasized that the club’s approach was pragmatic rather than reactive, with multiple discussions happening simultaneously until one deal came together.

While fans may have been hoping for a dramatic announcement, Cavenagh suggested that in modern football, especially mid-season, managerial negotiations are far more fluid and nuanced than most people realise.

Thelwell and Stewart Under Fire

Throughout the process, both sporting director Kevin Thelwell and CEO Patrick Stewart came under heavy criticism from supporters frustrated by the club’s inconsistent start to the season. Some accused the pair of mismanaging the search, while others questioned whether Rangers had a clear strategy in place.

Cavenagh was quick to defend his colleagues. “Patrick and Kevin did a tremendous job,” he said. “They were professional, thorough, and fully aligned throughout. The perception that there was chaos or disagreement couldn’t be further from the truth.”

He also pushed back against the idea that either Gerrard or Muscat declined due to issues with the club hierarchy. “It wasn’t about personalities or structures,” he said. “It was simply timing, logistics, and fit.”

Danny Rohl: The Right Man for the Future

Now that the dust has settled, Rangers believe they’ve landed a coach with the right balance of modern methods and long-term vision. Danny Rohl may not have been the fans’ expected appointment, but his reputation as a meticulous tactician and motivator has excited many within the club.

The former Bayern Munich and Germany assistant coach is seen as part of a new generation of analytical, forward-thinking managers who blend tactical precision with man-management. His early sessions at the Rangers Training Centre have reportedly impressed players with their intensity and attention to detail.

Cavenagh, for his part, is convinced that the search—however it appeared externally—delivered the right result. “Danny was someone we had admired for a long time,” he said. “We always knew he was a great fit for Rangers. He’s young, ambitious, and wants to build something special here.”

Looking Ahead: Focus on the Future

While the story of the managerial search has dominated headlines, Cavenagh made it clear that the club’s focus is now firmly on the future under Rohl’s leadership.

“Our energy has to be on what comes next,” he said. “We’ve got a coach we believe in, players who are motivated to respond, and a fanbase that deserves success. The appointment process might have looked messy from the outside, but the outcome is what matters—and we’re confident we got it right.”

As Rohl begins his tenure, the pressure will quickly shift from boardroom optics to on-field results. For Rangers, stability and progress are the goals. And for Cavenagh, the message is clear: the club didn’t “screw up”—it simply played a long, strategic game in the pursuit of the right man.

Whether the Ibrox faithful agree will depend, as ever, on what happens next on the pitch. But for now, Rangers’ new era under Danny Rohl has officially begun—and the chairman insists it’s exactly how they intended it all along.