Barry Ferguson says Rangers MUST get their own house in order and forget celebrating Ange Postecoglou's departure from Celtic.
The Hoops are on the search for a new gaffer after the 57-year-old landed the top job at English Premier League outfit Tottenham. His switch south of the border comes after two hugely successful seasons in Scotland that resulted in five trophies from six including a Treble this campaign after lifting the Scottish Cup at Hampden last weekend.
Celtic have in fact lifted 17 of the last 21 trophies up for grabs and while the sight of Ange departing may well delight some Rangers fans, Fergie is NOT one of them branding that trophy haul heading to Celtic Park as unacceptable. He has been used to a mentality of anything less than one or two pieces of silverware being looked upon as failure.
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He knows Celtic will bring someone in every bit as capable as Ange with a sensational Brendan Rodgers return floated. He was the man that started the trophy dominance with three Trebles on the trot. But what is clear to Ferguson is that Rangers MUST end Celtic's decades of dominance.
Writing in his Daily Record column, he said: "This is no time for anyone at Rangers to take their eye off the ball.
"Yes, I absolutely get it. The sight of Ange Postecoglou leaving Celtic for Spurs will have delighted some of my old club’s supporters. But I’m not one of them.
"When I wrote last week that I didn’t want the big Aussie to quit for Spurs I meant every word of it because I wanted Michael Beale to stand up to the challenge from across the city and then overcome it. Put it this way, Celtic’s decades of dominance are not going to be ended by default.
"And it’s worth remembering that, while Postecoglou claimed five out of six trophies in his two years at Parkhead, this was just the latest part of a pattern which stretches back way longer than a couple of seasons.
"In total, that’s 17 trophies they’ve picked up over the last seven campaigns. Just let that sink in for a moment. From the 21 that have been up for grabs over that period, they’ve stuck 17 of them in their own trophy cabinet.
"And if anyone at Ibrox thinks that’s even close to being considered acceptable then they don’t deserve to be inside the building. So let’s be very, very clear. This dominance has to stop.
"And there’s no point in Rangers celebrating Postecoglou jumping ship into the English Premier League when their own house still needs putting in order.
"No, Rangers are going to have to earn the right to get back to the top of the Scottish game by their own actions. They won’t just land there by getting lucky. And even if they do, they certainly won’t stay there for very long.
"Picking up the odd trophy every now and then is simply not the way my old club was built. I was brought up to accept that delivering anything less than one or two pieces of silverware a season would be looked upon as a failure.
"That may sound a bit demanding to some of the current players but the sooner the attitude returns, the better.
"So don’t waste any time laughing up your sleeve because Big Ange has left the premises. Get your finger out and get on with the job of restoring the natural order.
"And don’t even think about letting complacency creep into the equation because the chances are that Celtic will replace Postecoglou with a manager who is every bit as capable.
"The very mention of Brendan Rodgers being in the running for the job should send a shiver down the spine because he’s the guy who started this monopoly by leading them to three successive trebles.
"Now I don’t know if Rodgers is ready to return or not but, whoever is brought in, it won’t change what is required at Rangers.
"And that’s why I’m impressed by the work that has already been done in terms of recruitment. The transfer market hasn’t even opened for business yet but Michael Beale has already brought in three new signings without spending a penny on fees.
"To me, that’s a clear sign of intent and an indication that the manager fully understands the scale of the job in hand - no matter who is in charge across the road.
Yes, I’d have loved to see him going head-to-head with Postecoglou because, to put it bluntly, I’m a Bealever."
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