Rangers confirm Barry Ferguson arrival as 4 Ibrox heroes jet in and Patrick Stewart breaks silence on sacking

Clement was sacked on Sunday evening in the wake of losing 2-0 at home to St Mirren 24 hours earlier and the Rangers hierarchy have moved swiftly to put an interim management team in place.

Ferguson, 47, won 15 trophies across two spells as a Rangers player and was also the club captain. He has not been involved in frontline management since leaving Alloa Athletic three years ago and also has spells in charge of Kelty Hearts and Clyde on his CV.

His first match in charge of Rangers will be on Wednesday night when he takes the team to Rugby Park to face Kilmarnock in the Premiership. Rangers are currently 13 points behind Celtic in the title race.

Clement’s No 2 Issame Charai will remain at Ibrox to assist Ferguson. The Moroccan coach only joined Rangers last month and is understood to have overseen training on Monday morning. Clement’s three other backroom staff in Alex Rae, Stephan van der Heyden and Colin Stewart have all been released, however.

Three former Rangers players have also been added to the coaching staff until the end of the current campaign. Billy Dodds, Neil McCann and Allan McGregor will also assist Ferguson as the Govan outfit bid to progress past Fenerbahce in the last 16 of the Europa League and finish the season strongly.

Rangers then plan to appoint a permanent successor to Clement in the summer. The club is currently locked in talks with American franchise the 49ers over a potential takeover, there is a football department review taking place from an external firm in the US and there are plans to bring in a sporting director. Given the uncertain landscape at Ibrox, the club has decided not to rush into a permanent appointment.

A statement on Rangers’ website read: “Rangers Football Club can today announce Hall of Fame member and former club captain, Barry Ferguson, is to become Head Coach of our men’s first team until the end of the season.

“Ferguson, who won five league titles, five Scottish Cups and five League Cups across two spells at Ibrox, will be joined by coaches Issame Charai, Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor.

“As confirmed yesterday, Philippe Clement is leaving the club. In addition, Alex Rae, Colin Stewart and Stephan van der Heyden are also departing. Rangers FC would like to thank Philippe, Alex, Colin and Stephan for their contribution and commitment. They will always be welcome at the club.

“Brian Gilmour will remain with Rangers to continue to bridge the gap between the academy and the first-team.

“The ongoing football review will continue, and a new, permanent manager will be appointed in the coming months.”

Rangers chief executive Patrick Stewart, who only just last week gave Clement a vote of confidence, admitted that there was no way back for Clement after defeat at the weekend and reiterated that issues far “deeper” than the first-team manager need to be addressed at Ibrox.

“Philippe and his team have worked tirelessly during their time in at the club and have played an important role in developing the first team’s young players,” said Stewart in a statement.

“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.

“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.”

Ferguson is expected to speak for the first time publicly on Tuesday when he holds his pre-match press conference ahead of facing Kilmarnock.