From top to bottom Rangers are dire, INCLUDING Danny Rohl | OneFootball

Once again, Rangers fans have fallen into the Russell Martin fallacy. This has been a brand new quibble that Ibrox Noise has had in the past year. That is to say, a tribalistic backing of a manager once they arrive that no one actually wanted in the first place. That backing can see no evil on his part and blames the players 24-7.

Cliches recycled

Ibrox Noise has been the recipient of many clichés the last month. ‘Give Danny a chance’. ‘Give him time FFS’. ‘Look what he inherited FFS’. ‘Do you want Russell Martin back FFS’. All the exact same lines those same fans used to defend Martin himself after replacing Philippe Clement. Pretty much the same clichés over and over again to explain bad result after bad result or bad performance after bad performance. The next line is then ‘let’s see what he gets in January’. ‘You cannot judge him at this point’. But After nine or ten matches, well, yes you can.

Cult Backing Of Every Manager

Rangers fans have a cult following behind whoever their manager is and will back him to hell or high water. This mentality came through Mark Warburton. We remember an incredibly strong pro-Warburton vibe after our promising performances in the Championship then promotion. After that, the sanctimony and cult following behind Warburton until it became clear that he was out of his depth was overwhelming. There was a huge fan backing for that manager. Till he allegedly betrayed us that is.

The Pattern Has Repeated For Years

That mentality has remained. Even Pedro got it. He was described as ‘staunch’. Rangers fans have a fixation on whoever the manager is. It does not matter if it’s Danny Rohl, Russell Martin, Philippe Clement or Popeye the Sailor Man. The fans will always shout for the manager and yell at the players, blaming them. This happens despite the abundant mistakes that any manager may be making at Ibrox. And let’s face it, Rohl is making many mistakes.

Rohl Was Never Wanted Yet Now Has A Following

We at Ibrox Noise did not want Danny Rohl. We were not as aggressive against him as we were about Russell Martin. But we were not in favour of him. The funny thing is, neither was the fan base. 97% against that appointment (see below). But just like Russell Martin, the same mentality of ‘he’s here now so let’s get behind’ him has kicked in with Rohl. This happens despite his management inadequacy, mistakes, poor substitutions, diabolical formations, woeful partnership selections and dreadful football. The same excuses are being trotted out time and time again.

Fans Refuse To Judge A Manager Early Enough

Ten competitive matches is enough to form a reasonable opinion. Unfortunately, some fans would wait one hundred matches before they dare question the manager. They might even go beyond that. We know the usual ones will respond with this is a ridiculous post. You cannot judge the manager this early without his own players. He must have his own team and his own time. Thing is we have tried that before and it always goes wrong. But fans still say it every time. They said it for Russell Martin. They said it for Clement. They repeat it until it’s too late.

Martin GTF

The same fans who said all this about Russell Martin were then heard clear as day chanting GTF. Rohl has a tonne of credit in the bank, and isn’t widely being criticised. But that will change unless he gets this team playing. Unfortunately, we can already smell January excuses. ‘The board didn’t back him’. ‘These aren’t the players he would have wanted’.

Rohl Is Out Of His Depth

We are not saying Danny Rohl is a terrible manager. We are saying he is out of his depth at Rangers and always was. You all know that. It’s why most of you voted against his appointment. But you fell in line once he was appointed. Now you are part of the 99 percent of fans who demand we all ‘get behind the manager FFS’. It’s always the manager.

The Squad Is Not Literal Garbage

The players have a market value of around £100M. They are not absolute garbage. They are the worst Rangers team of all time. But they are not literal garbage that cannot beat Falkirk. They’re not so awful that they can’t overcome Livi with something to spare. Yet again we saw another miserable display at the weekend where the visiting side looked superior to the hosts. Again the fans screamed ‘it’s the players. They are terrible. They are not working hard’. That is correct. But that is the manager’s job. He must motivate and provide the tactics and the system.

Players Reflect Their Manager

Footballers are professional. They will do their job. But if their job is a mess then so are they. We are not defending these players. They are garbage by Rangers standards. But they are better than this manager (or the last one) allows them to be. We are nowhere near top three or top four. But we are better than a team scraping past Livingston by pure luck. We are better than a team that cannot beat Falkirk.

Rangers Are A Mess From Top To Bottom

Rangers are atrocious from top to bottom. The ownership, the board, the manager and the players all contribute to this. If you hire a lower Championship level manager he will not be much better than that. You cannot put him in a Rangers suit and expect Walter Smith levels from him. Just like signing League One level players and staff. You’re not going to get a Rangers from that.

The Walter Smith Comparison

Walter Smith could change anything at Rangers overnight. With one match he took over from Paul Le Guen. His ramshackle squad was a mess. With two or three signings he fixed everything. But he had already started winning before he made those signings.

The Reality Of Rohl

Rohl is out of his depth. He is a nice guy. But he is Russell Martin mark two if a bit more likeable. The players are also diabolical. That will not change much in January. Especially if the manager is headhunting guys himself now. The Russell Martin fallacy is real.

The State Of Recruitment

We cannot blame Kevin Thelwell for Scott Fry or Tristan Steiner. That’s Rohl. He’s also looking at some Bundesliga 2 LB. And that is about the shape of it, isn’t it?