We’re delighted to welcome football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Rangers...
Dan Plumley has insisted that Michael Beale was under “immense” pressure from the first day he signed as Rangers manager last season.
The finance expert admitted that Champions League qualification brings jeopardy to the season immediately, and failing to each the group stage brings into play another budget.
It comes after the likes of Kevin Muscat and John Eustace [Daily Mail, 06 September] have already been linked with replacing Beale at Ibrox.
“The bigger picture is that taking that job, you’re always under pressure from day one,” he exclusively told Ibrox News.
“It’s immense pressure in that role and if you look at how it has panned out over the summer, and go back to the Champions League and Europa League, that is the jeopardy of this position, you can’t guarantee until the very end of August that you will be in the Champions League.
“It didn’t quite work out in Rangers’ favour and from a financial point of view, you have to have two budgeted scenarios, you probably have more than that.
“You’re best case scenario is Champions League and then spending to get the squad to do it, but the risk with that is you don’t get there and you have a higher wage bill and transfer fees payable.#
“It’s always a balance and the tricky thing for any manager is always going to be, the scenarios and the issue of having to still compete at the top of the Scottish table and winning the league.
“It was always going to be a pressure summer, and there is starting to look like there are some chinks in the armour.”
In other Rangers news, Plumley has insisted that the club can argue they have missed out after a £900m+ deal was signed off elsewhere
