Philippe Clement odds-on favourite for Rangers job
Published:
Kevin Muscat second favourite in next Rangers manager odds
Philippe Clement is now the odds-on favourite to replace Michael Beale as Rangers manager.
Frank Lampard, Kevin Muscat and John Eustace have all had their turns as front-runners for the vacancy, but former Genk and Club Brugge manager Clement now leads the way at 1/4.
We look at some of the main contenders to fill the vacancy at Ibrox and their next Rangers manager odds.
Philippe Clement
Clement won the Belgian league title in three successive seasons between 2019-21, first with Genk and then twice in charge of Club Brugge.
The former Coventry midfielder sought a new challenge with Monaco last season, but a sixth-placed finish saw him leave the Ligue 1 club in June.
Clement had been linked with a move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Shabab, but his interest has reportedly cooled, with Rangers supposedly ready to offer the former Coventry midfielder a four-year deal.
Kevin Muscat
The 50-year-old former Australia defender – who won the Treble with Rangers in the 2002-03 season – is flourishing in charge of Japanese club Yokohama F. Marinos after succeeding the Celtic-bound Ange Postecoglou in the role in the summer of 2021. Won the Japanese league title last year and his team are currently second, four points off the top with five games to play.
John Eustace
Eustace was sacked by Birmingham just three days after a 3-1 victory over West Brom moved them into the Championship play-off spots amid speculation he will be replaced by Wayne Rooney, who recently left MLS side DC United.
Despite claiming that the Rangers post is “not a job that interests me at all” he may reconsider now that he is out of work.
Eustace replaced Lee Bowyer as manager at St Andrew’s in July 2022 and steered the Blues to Championship safety, although this season they are looking up rather than down.
Five wins and three draws from their first 11 games have lifted Birmingham into sixth place, but Eustace’s dismissal has potentially opened the door for a move to the Glasgow giants.
Steven Davis
The 38-year-old Northern Irishman, who had two fruitful spells as a player at Ibrox, was invited by the Gers board to take the reins until they appoint a new permanent boss.
Davis has been assisted by fellow former Rangers players Alex Rae and Steven Smith, as well as coach Brian Gilmour and goalkeeping coach Colin Stewart.
Davis is unlikely to be considered for the role on a permanent basis and did not help his cause with an embarrassing 2-1 defeat by Aris Limassol in the Europa League.
Derek McInnes
The 52-year-old former Rangers midfielder turned down the Ibrox job in 2017 while he was on a long and fruitful stint in charge of Aberdeen. Following his departure from Pittodrie, McInnes has done an impressive job with Kilmarnock, leading them from the Championship and re-establishing them in the top flight. He has already overseen victories over both Glasgow sides this season.
Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers endorsed him as a potential Ibrox boss in August. “He was very close to getting the Rangers job a few years ago and why couldn’t he manage Rangers?” said Rodgers. “He’s a former player there, a very good player, who was part of a successful era for the club so there’s no doubt that could be one for him in the future because he’s an outstanding manager.”
Pascal Jansen
Jansen holds joint British and Dutch nationality, and was the second favourite to take the reins at Ibrox after an impressive three years with AZ Alkmaar, but ruled himself out of the running before his side’s Europa Conference Lague encounter with Legia Warsaw.
London-born Jansen, whose mother was a singer with pop duo Spooky and Sue, led AZ to fourth place in the Eredivisie last season and they are second in the current campaign after an unbeaten start.
Jansen was assistant to the much-respected Arne Slot but took over the head role when the Dutchman left to join Feyenoord.
Kjetil Knutsen
The 54-year-old Norwegian has made a name for himself after establishing Bodo/Glimt as one of the top teams in Norway since taking charge in 2018. Led them to their first-ever title win in 2020 and followed up the feat a year later. Currently a point clear at the top of the Eliteserien after 23 games. Has also overseen some impressive European runs over the past three seasons, most notably in the 2021/22 campaign when Bodo/Glimt reached the quarter-finals of the Conference League after defeating Postecoglou’s Celtic 5-1 on aggregate.
Frank Lampard
Lampard was reportedly interested in taking charge of the Light Blues, but the feeling was apparently not reciprocated by the Rangers board.
The former England midfielder’s previous role was as caretaker coach of Chelsea at the tail end of last season, but he won just one of his 11 games in charge.
The Blues legend was first appointed Chelsea manager on a three-year contract in July 2019 after a reasonably successful spell at Derby, but left 18 months later with the club in ninth place.
Lampard returned to work 12 months later as manager of Everton and maintained their 68-year top-flight status with a thrilling comeback win against Crystal Palace with a game to spare, but was sacked in January after just one win in 11 games.
Oliver Glasner
Rangers will be very familiar with Glasner, whose Eintracht Frankfurt side beat the Light Blues in the 2022 Europa League final in a penalty shoot-out.
The Austrian led Frankfurt to last season’s German Cup final which they lost to RB Leipzig, and that proved to be his last game in charge of the club.
Glasner had enjoyed a successful spell with LASK in his native Austria and then Wolfsburg who he steered to the Champions League with a fourth-placed finish in the 2020-21 season which caught the eye of Frankfurt.
Graham Potter
Potter remains out of work since being sacked by Chelsea at the start of April, just seven months into his reign at Stamford Bridge. Despite failing to improve the fortunes of the Blues, Potter still has an excellent reputation from his spell at Swedish minnows Ostersund, the team he led from the fourth tier in Swedish football to the top flight.
The former York defender also proved his technical nous at Swansea and Brighton, leading the latter to ninth place in his final season at the club – the Seagulls’ highest finish in the Premier League until that was bettered by Robero De Zerbi in the 2022-23 campaign.
However, Potter has apparently ruled himself out of the running, so his odds have drifted from 6/1.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication
