Former captain Barry Ferguson takes charge of Rangers until end of season | OneFootball

Rangers have placed former captain Barry Ferguson in charge of first-team affairs until the end of the season following Philippe Clement’s sacking.

Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat to St Mirren proved to be the final straw for Clement, with the club announcing the Belgian’s departure on Sunday night after 16 months at the helm.

The surprise loss left second-placed Rangers 13 points behind Old Firm rivals Celtic in the Premiership and came after a damaging Scottish Cup reverse to minnows Queen’s Park on February 9.

Ex-Scotland midfielder Ferguson won five league titles, five Scottish Cups and five League Cups across two spells at Ibrox.

The 47-year-old, who has previous managerial experience at Clyde, Kelty Hearts and Alloa, will be joined by coaches Issame Charai, Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor.

Chief executive Patrick Stewart told Rangers’ official website: “Philippe and his team have worked tirelessly during their time at the club and have played an important role in developing the first team’s young players.

“I want to reiterate, the issues we are facing run deeper than the manager. The ongoing football review seeks to address those issues and we will continue to implement its findings in the coming weeks and months ahead of appointing a new, permanent manager.

“When I spoke to RangersTV last week, I was clear that everyone is judged on results and nobody will get unlimited time in any role at the club.

“Ultimately, the team’s response following their early exit from the Scottish Cup was a cause for deep concern, leading the board to conclude that action had to be taken now.

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“I want to wish Philippe every success in the future. He is a fine man whom I have enjoyed working with in my short time here so far.

“I also want to welcome Barry back to the club. We appreciate him and his team stepping into the role at this difficult time. Myself, the board and the executive team will give them our full support for the rest of the campaign.”

Alex Rae, Colin Stewart and Stephan van der Heyden have also followed Clement out of the door.