Shocking Turn of Events: Rangers Part Ways with Manager Michael Beale After 10 Months at Ibrox

Rangers have dismissed manager Michael Beale after a brief tenure of only 10 months. Currently, the team trails the Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic by seven points. This setback comes as the team suffered their third loss in seven league games, with Aberdeen securing a 3-1 victory at Ibrox on Saturday.

The Rangers will now be under the temporary leadership of an interim management team consisting of Steven Davis, alongside former players Alex Rae, Steven Smith, and Brian Gilmour. The interim management team will remain in place as long as needed for the Rangers board to hire the appropriate long-term manager for the club.

The club is confident that the interim management team will possess the necessary UEFA coaching licenses to guide the club in the Europa League. This comes as Rangers face Aris Limassol on Thursday. Beale had been under increasing pressure in recent weeks following his team's 1-0 defeat to their Old Firm rivals at home. This came shortly after their devastating 7-3 aggregate loss to PSV in the Champions League play-off.

Despite Rangers' four consecutive wins, some supporters still expressed their dissatisfaction through boos. As a result, Beale, who took charge of 43 competitive matches, has been relieved of his duties by CEO James Bisgrove and chairman John Bennett. Beale's tenure as the club's manager, which began in November 2026, is now one of the shortest in the club's history, with only Pedro Caixinha and Paul Le Guen departing sooner.

Rangers are currently in pursuit of their fourth manager in just two years, after Steven Gerrard's departure to Aston Villa in 2021, and the subsequent sackings of Van Bronckhorst and Beale in the following years.

Additional updates forthcoming.

What went wrong for Beale?

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Only two permanent managers have had shorter reigns than Beale at Rangers

Beale joined QPR barely six months after securing his debut managerial position at Loftus Road.

Despite concerns about his limited managerial experience, his coaching prowess was widely admired after more than two decades in the field.

He also knew about the demands of being at Rangers, following three years at Ibrox as part of Gerrard's backroom team that won the club's 55th top-flight title.

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Beale was a coach under Steven Gerrard at Rangers

In his first interview since his appointment, Beale emphasized his readiness for the job and expressed confidence in the team he inherited from van Bronckhorst, countering the notion that it was in disarray. Despite their early elimination from the Champions League and trailing Celtic by nine points, Beale believed that the team displayed resilience. On closer inspection of last season's results, it becomes apparent that Rangers only suffered defeats to two clubs, namely Aberdeen and Celtic, out of 29 games, indicating potential progress.

However, upon further investigation, it becomes apparent that losses to their Old Firm rivals were frequent and had significant consequences. In January, there was a disappointing result of two dropped points in a draw at Ibrox. Then, in February, Beale's team suffered a defeat in the League Cup final. The defeat in April at Celtic Park effectively crushed Rangers' chances of winning the title, and just a few weeks later, their hopes of winning the Scottish Cup went up in smoke with a defeat in the semi-final.

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Beale only managed one win against Celtic - in May - after the title had been won by Ange Postecoglou's side

After securing a victory against Celtic at Ibrox, just a week after clinching the title, fans were left contemplating whether Beale's team could triumph in crucial matches, especially after a season devoid of trophies. In order to win over skeptics and reconstruct a squad that was losing key players like Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent, Allan McGregor, and others, Beale received the support of the board.

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Alfredo Morelos departed Rangers in the summer, along with other players, as Beale commenced the task of revamping his squad. During the latter part of last season, Beale collaborated with the scouting department to identify potential players since Sporting director Ross Wilson had departed for Nottingham Forest.

Prior to the start of the 2023/24 season, he traversed Europe to meet potential signings. This resulted in the acquisition of nine new players, including Danilo for approximately £6m, Cyriel Dessers for around £4.5m, and Sam Lammers for about £3m. Financial backing allowed Beale to have a net spend of approximately £5m, with six of these new signings making appearances in the league opener. Nevertheless, fans were left disheartened as Kilmarnock emerged victorious with a 1-0 win at Rugby Park, leading to a disappointing start to the new campaign.

Beale's team successfully advanced to the Champions League play-offs by defeating Servette. However, the team's performances did not impress certain fans, especially after narrowly defeating Morton, a Championship side, in the League Cup. Doubts arose regarding the recruitment decisions made by Beale and his team. These doubts were further amplified when a group of fans changed their opinion within a span of just five days.

PSV inflicted a 5-1 defeat on Rangers in Eindhoven during the Champions League play-offs, following their previous victory over the same club the previous year. This result led to Rangers' relegation to the Europa League. Later, in a sold-out Ibrox Stadium without any away fans, Celtic managed to secure a win with all three points, despite their injury-ridden squad. The new signings once again failed to make a positive impression.

After the September international break, certain fans called for Beale's departure, however, the board showed their support and believed in his ability to reverse the situation, especially with his significant spending during the summer.

After dedicating two weeks to training, the team's performance improved significantly. Rangers triumphed in four consecutive matches, preventing their opponents from scoring a single goal. Despite this progress, there were still instances where the fans expressed their dissatisfaction through boos.

Fans were divided in their opinions - some were still adamant about Beale's departure. As injuries continued to accumulate, something Beale had vowed to address from the beginning, the question remained: how would he regain the support of these fans?

Unfortunately, the answer was clear - he couldn't. Aberdeen's victory over Beale's team, marking their third league loss in seven games, signaled the end, and Rangers have now embarked on the search for their 19th manager in their history.

Rangers' next five fixtures

October 8: St Mirren (a), Scottish Premiership, kick-off noon - live on We

October 21: Hibernian (h), Scottish Premiership, kick-off 3pm

October 26: Sparta Prague (a), Europa League, kick-off 5.45pm

October 29: Hearts (h), Scottish Premiership, kick-off 3pm

Beale's timeline as Rangers manager

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Beale took over as the manager of Rangers on November 28, 2022, signing a contract that extends until the summer of 2026. He replaced Giovanni van Bronckhorst, who was dismissed, with Rangers trailing Celtic by nine points in the league.

On November 29, 2022, Beale reassures We that the team is in better shape than perceived and expresses the need to address the injury crisis that afflicted Rangers last season for improved performance. Following the team's defeat to Aberdeen on Saturday, Beale confirms that nine players are currently injured after seven league matches this season.

On December 15, 2022, Rangers triumph over Hibernian with a 3-2 victory, marking Beale's inaugural competitive game as manager. Subsequently, his team secures wins in their next three matches.

On January 2, 2023, the Rangers missed an opportunity to narrow the gap to six points as they surrendered an 88th-minute equalizer at home to Celtic, resulting in a 2-2 draw. This marked the first Old Firm match under Beale's management.

On January 15, 2023, the Rangers emerged victorious in a thrilling encounter against Aberdeen, securing a 2-1 win after extra time at Hampden Park. This triumph propelled them to the League Cup final after a notable streak of nine consecutive victories subsequent to the Old Firm draw.

On January 23, 2023, Rangers boss Beale secures his first signing, Todd Cantwell, from Norwich City for a long-term contract.

On January 31, 2023, Nicolas Raskin becomes Beale's second signing for Rangers, joining from Standard Liege. This completes the club's winter window arrivals.

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Rangers' Nicolas Raskin (on the left) and Todd Cantwell have made a strong impression since joining the team in January. However, Beale's side was unable to secure their first trophy of the season as they suffered a 2-1 defeat against Celtic in the League Cup final at Hampden Park on February 26, 2023.

April 8, 2023: Following a remarkable streak of victories in various competitions, the Rangers team triumphed in the next five matches. However, their winning streak was interrupted when they encountered Celtic at Celtic Park, resulting in a narrow 3-2 defeat in the league. As a consequence, the hosts managed to extend their lead over Beale's side to a considerable 12 points.

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Rangers lost to Celtic in the League Cup final at Hampden

On April 30, 2023, Rangers experienced a 2-0 defeat at Aberdeen in the league, followed by another loss to Celtic in the Scottish Cup semi-final with Jota's goal leading to a 1-0 victory for Ange Postecoglou's team.

Moving forward to May 13, 2023, Rangers managed to secure a 3-0 victory against Celtic at Ibrox, marking Beale's first Old Firm triumph as the Gers boss. This win came a week after Celtic had already sealed the title.

Rangers have signed nine players in the summer transfer window of 2023: Leon Balogun, Jack Butland, Jose Cifuentes, Cyriel Dessers, Kieran Dowell, Sam Lammers, Danilo Pereira da Silva, Abdallah Sima, and Dujon Sterling. It is believed that the manager, Beale, has a net spend of approximately £5m, demonstrating the club's support in rebuilding their squad.

August 5, 2023: Beale's team commences the new league campaign with a 1-0 loss against Kilmarnock, as five fresh players join the squad and one substitutes.

August 15, 2023: Following a 2-1 victory at Ibrox in the initial leg on August 9, Rangers secure their spot in the Champions League play-offs with a 1-1 draw at Servette.

On August 30, 2023, the Rangers achieved a 2-2 draw in the first leg against PSV on August 22. However, playing away from home, Beale's team suffered a 5-1 defeat, resulting in them missing out on a Champions League spot and instead being placed in the Europa League group stage.

Just a few days later, on September 3, 2023, the Rangers faced Celtic, who were dealing with multiple injury concerns. Unfortunately, Brendan Rodgers' team emerged victorious with a 1-0 win at Ibrox. As a result, the Rangers fell four points behind their rivals after playing four league games, right before the international break.

September 16, 2023: Rangers return from the break to win 2-0 at St Johnstone.

September 21, 2023: Rangers then beat Real Betis 1-0 at Ibrox in their opening Europa League group game.

September 24, 2023: Despite securing a 1-0 victory against Motherwell at Ibrox, Beale's team faced a barrage of boos from the disappointed crowd at full-time.

September 30, 2023: In their seventh league match of the season, Rangers suffer their third defeat as Aberdeen triumphs with a 3-1 scoreline at Ibrox. The home team once again endures the sound of boos from their own supporters for the third consecutive game.

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