Exclusive:Rangers legend ready to help club as people ask 'are you going to be next manager'

The legendary former skipper, who led Rangers to nine successive Scottish League titles, has also declared himself available to provide input.

Gough is based in the United States but has recently been in Scotland and attended what proved to be Martin’s last home match in charge against Genk, when he sat in the directors’ box and heard the unhappiness of supporters. The 63-year-old, who is a Rangers ambassador, visited the club’s training ground on a previous trip in the very early days of Martin’s ill-fated tenure to wish the manager well.

Gough wants the club to return to basics, which includes developing Scottish players such as Findlay Curtis - the winger made an instant impact at the start of the season only to find his playing time curtailed following Mikey Moore's arrival on loan from Spurs.

“We have lost that a little bit,” he told The Scotsman. “I would love to have a Scottish manager in charge or someone with a knowledge of the Scottish game. But also Scottish players. I’d like to rebuild it. And get as many Scottish players as possible in the team. We have kind of lost that. Since (Dick) Advocaat came in really, we lost that. I like to see a good core of Scottish players in the team. I think we need that to keep the identity of the club.”

"That’s just my reading of it. If we could have kept (Billy) Gilmour, Lewis Ferguson at the club, (Nathan) Paterson… You might need to be like Ajax, sell the players as they come through, but at least try to keep them at the club for a wee bit. Not sell them like Gilmour at 16-year-old, or Paterson. It needs to be a different set-up.”

Rangers’ decision to sign Chermiti is questioned

In an open letter to fans on Monday evening, chairman Andrew Cavenagh and vice-chairman Paraag Marathe stressed that current chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell remain steadfast in “building out a stable leadership and football structure” for the long-term.

“You can’t have four managers or whatever it is in a year,” said Gough. “You have to look at the recruitment. In hindsight, it’s again been poor. Rangers and Celtic are difficult clubs to play for. You have to win every game. There’s not really any other clubs, maybe Ajax in Holland, who are similarly big clubs in smaller leagues. There is a lot of pressure on the players as well as the manager. And even when you have the best players, all the players you play against raise their game.

“Who is making the decision to bring a striker in for £10 million? That’s where I feel sorry for Russell. I wasn’t sure whether these players were his own decision. In Walter Smith’s day, he’d say to Archie (Knox), have a look at this one, or that one. They’d each have a look and make a decision with their own eyes. Now, I am not sure. Is the head coach just given players without any say? Hopefully that’s not right.”

Gough knows it will be hard for whoever comes in. “It’s not an easy task,” he said. “You are left with someone else’s players.” Going by his own set parameters, Hearts’ Derek McInnes or Stephen Robinson at St Mirren are among candidates favoured by the former Ibrox skipper. Gough is prepared to contribute if required – in the identification process and even on the training pitch.

“Of course,” he said. “Even just if someone wanted me to do something defensively. Of course, I would. If any manager coming in needed help, of course I would.

“In the last few days (in Scotland), I have had people say, ‘Are you going to be the manager?!’ I reply, ‘Listen, I am flying back to San Diego!’ Of course, the club is close to my heart. If they needed anything, they know I would do it. I’d definitely talk about it. I am not saying it is going to happen.

"You just don’t know which way they are going to go," he added. "I saw my good friend ‘Coisty saying if they asked him to go back in as manager, he would. I am thinking, he is on every TV station in the land! And he’s willing to go back to Rangers! I am not sure if he’s pulling people’s legs. If the club asked him, I’m sure he would.

"They do need people who know what the club is about. (Steven) Gerrard took to the club well but then he had been a big player and was at a big club (Liverpool). People who know what the club is about are important, even if just in the background. People around the manager who can say, ‘I don’t think that is a good decision’ or ‘No, you can’t say that’.”