How Bad Are Rangers Now? Even Ally McCoist Says Going Back Would Be A Step Back – Celtic Fans Will Love This

How bad are Rangers now? Even Ally McCoist believes returning to the Ibrox dugout would be “a step back”.

That was the most revealing line from McCoist after Rangers’ miserable European exit against Jablonec.

Asked on talkSPORT whether he could follow Celtic manager Martin O’Neill back into management, McCoist made his position perfectly clear.

“That would be a step back the way.”

For Celtic supporters, the irony is almost too good.

Rangers And Ally McCoist Have Already Been Here Before

McCoist managed Rangers from 2011 to 2014, a spell littered with painful cup failures. Yet even a man with that record looks at the current Ibrox job and decides life in the punditry chair is preferable.

That tells you plenty about where Rangers are.

McCoist himself described the Jablonec defeat as the club’s “worst ever” European result. He said there was “nothing defensively” and “nothing at all in attack”, before branding recruitment “appalling”.

This is not Celtic supporters laughing from the outside. These are the words of one of Rangers’ biggest icons.

Ally McCoist’s Punditry Deserves Scrutiny Too

There is another reason I would rather McCoist stayed on talkSPORT.

After Celtic’s controversial late penalty against Motherwell, he said he had spoken to six or seven colleagues and claimed five had mentioned “corruption or cheating”. Another, he said, questioned the game’s “integrity”.

Maybe those were simply other people’s words. My opinion is that McCoist can be very clever in how he introduces these explosive accusations while keeping them at arm’s length.

That is why I find the approach sleekit.

If somebody genuinely believes Scottish football is corrupt, they should provide evidence and say it plainly. Otherwise, repeating anonymous accusations only throws fuel onto the fire.

Perhaps punditry suits McCoist perfectly.

He can criticise Rangers, Celtic and Scottish football without ever having to fix the problems himself.

At Ibrox, there would be nowhere to hide.

When even Ally McCoist thinks becoming Rangers manager again would be “a step back”, Rangers have probably reached the point where the punchline writes itself.

Key Takeaways

• McCoist says returning to Rangers management would be “a step back”.
• He branded the club’s European display and recruitment appalling.
• His previous Rangers managerial record makes the admission even more striking.
• His talkSPORT comments around “corruption”, “cheating” and “integrity” remain open to criticism.